Show Yourself Into The Unknown
by Yuna Yami Mouto
Summary: The one where Thanos is dead, Tony has weird dreams instead of nightmares, the Avengers watch dubious Disney movies and mystical creatures are more than real. Oh, and the Cloak totally ships it.
1. Chapter 1

**Show Yourself Into The Unknwon**

**Summary: The one where Thanos is dead, Tony has weird dreams instead of nightmares, the Avengers watch dubious Disney movies and mystical creatures are more than real. Oh, and the Cloak totally ships it.**

**A/N: Inspired by recently watching Frozen 2 in the theaters and my absolute love of All Is Found, Into The Unknown, Show Yourself, fictional creatures and, of course, MCU.**

**Another A/N: I bring you this little Christmas teaser for my new story I am currently working on writing up that I will try to update on New Year's Eve and the Orthodox Christmas on the 7th of January 2020, though by that time I should have it all done and ready for your viewing! But fear not, my dear readers, for I will not leave you hanging until those dates, either, as I have another story in store for you until this one is ready!**

**Anyway, I hope you enjoy and Merry Christmas!**

Tony jerked awake for the third time that week to some weird dream he never remembered upon opening his eyes to the real world. It's been going on for months, almost since the exact date he had snapped everyone dusted by Thanos back into existence and nearly died and lost an arm in the process, had it not been for Strange, Wong and, surprisingly, Loki. At first, he had written it off as the aftereffects of the trauma he'd went through throughout the year, but it wasn't making any sense anymore. Christmas and New Year's Eve were just around the corner and everyone seemed to be getting better at dealing with the experience Thanos and his insanity had been. Hell, they even managed to rebuild Vision once they had the Mind Stone back and even Quill was learning to live with no Gamora. Even Nebula, who had decided to stay on Earth - she trusted _no one_ with keeping Tony alive in her absence, in spite of how offended his friends and AIs were at the insinuation but glad to have someone else in their corner regarding that - was starting to relax and accept the fact that her sister was gone.

Only Tony continued to struggle, and that was mostly because of his restless nights.

Well, not _restless_. This was probably the first time in years he kept sleeping through the night when he went to bed and waking up at least six hours later, a record for him, really. Though he always felt like he'd been awake for _hours_ after he got up, which made no sense whatsoever. It almost felt like the dreams _were_ happening instead of just being products of a resting mind.

And they weren't even nightmares.

In fact, Tony hadn't had a single nightmare since everyone came back and Thor severed Thanos' head from his shoulders.

It was like there was nothing left to haunt his nights when there was, in fact, now more of it than ever. Pepper had at first marveled at the change before becoming unnerved by it. She started checking his reactions to everything else and whenever he pulled up his press mask when asked about things he felt uncomfortable talking about, she'd get this ... almost _disgusted_ look on her face. Tony hadn't understood why until she one day accused him of turning into a psychopath that had no empathy for others and no emotions whatsoever. He could see that she instantly regretted saying it - it was a heat of the moment thing, after a long, stressful day at SI for her and a string of Accords meetings for him so they were both on edge and he had tried to hide it so as not to worry her since he had still been technically recovering - but the words were there and they haunted their every step for two months, putting a strain to their relationship that had never been tested in this sense before.

They grew apart and Pepper asked that they cancel the wedding and everything else and just try to go back to being friends. It was hard and they both struggled through it, but when the media realized they were passing through their shitstorm together regardless of the status or nature of their relationship, they backed off before the power(ex)couple of SI gets them fired from their jobs for lack of professional conduct or verbal harassment. Either way, soon enough Tony once again found himself sleeping in his own bed and yet the dreams persisted.

He'd never remember them, not a single thing, though he was sure he'd talked to someone or at least _listened_ to them. He couldn't be sure but he almost felt like he was ... _sharing_ his dreams with someone else, quite literally at that. Stark had panicked at first, of course, given both Loki and Maximoff were staying with the rest of the - reformed and re-branded, according to the UN Council - Avengers at the Compound, and yet he never felt ... _threatened_ or _endangered_ by the dreams. He was always content during and after one of them so he was pretty sure neither of those two had anything to do with it. He had suspected Stephen - because he _was_ Stephen these days; anyone who can tell the former rouges and Loki to stuff it and then reinforce whatever consequences he set for the failure to oblige was definitely okay in Tony's books - doing something to alleviate his nightmares, thinking it was some neat sorcery trick only to be baffled by how tired both he and Wong looked after a night of reliving their own nightmares when he'd come by to check on them in the Sanctum in New York after no sightings of either man despite some extraterrestrials being far too close to the Sanctum for anyone's liking.

Apparently practicing the Mystic Arts while emotionally unstable was a big no no. Loki let up some of his grudge towards Stephen - Tony has _got_ to get the story behind that - acknowledging that despite being inferior in years of study, Strange might not be such a bad sorcerer if he abides by these rules/regulations or whatever.

Needless to say, neither practiced sorcerer was all that happy with the Scarlet Witch.

Anyway, the point was it couldn't have been Stephen. Even if he _did_ have a cure for nightmares, Stephen wouldn't administrate it on anybody unless he had their permission and especially not on Tony. The man had been quite clear about that while he was healing Tony's head injury and he'd made a joke about mental magics. He had looked so _hurt_ and _offended_, like Tony had thrown a slur in his face and Tony could understand that. The man _did_ have a straight and sure moral compass, even _if_ the utter, asshole of a dumbass had went against it and allowed half of all life in the universe to be - thankfully only temporarily and that was all because of Strange in the first place - erased from existence just for Tony to live. But seeing as it was the only way to defeat Thanos, Tony can forgive him this once.

Still, that left him no closer to finding out just what the hell was messing with his sleep.

"Hey, baby-girl? What time is it?"

"It's eight in the morning, Boss. Your mandatory Avengers meeting starts in two hours," FRIDAY cheerfully chirps in her Irish lilt that often calmed him well enough after these things. The engineer sighed and got out of bed. Once again, he had somehow overslept through the alarm and FRIDAY had no doubt been eager to shut it off when he proved unresponsive. All of his friends thought his new, regular and healthily lengthy sleeping schedule was a good thing but Tony couldn't help being uneasy. This was _him_ they were talking about. The only people who had ever managed to make him go to bed on time shared a name and a voice and were long since dead. The fact that Tony could sleep so much without a sophisticated, elegant male British voice just one call away left him deeply unsettled.

This, whatever this was, was unnatural and honestly starting to creep him out.

He sighed and went through his morning routine, all the while wondering if he should even bring it up to Stephen after today's meeting or if he should keep quiet. Stephen was, after all, not only the Sorcerer Supreme but also a doctor and while that may not exactly be his field of expertise, Tony rather doubted a perfectionist like the sorcerer would ever _not_ know something that _might_ come up in his line of work as a useful skill. If nothing else, he'll be willing to offer a listening ear and talk about it. It could very well be leftover effects from using the Infinity Stones. According to Thor and Loki and whoever else was asked, Tony shouldn't have survived. No matter what help he received, he shouldn't have survived.

"You are no ordinary mortal," Loki had said before Tony had lost the battle to exhaustion, only to have the same repeated to him by Nebula. "You are not an ordinary Terran." Neither explained but Nebula stuck by his side no matter what visitor he had. Guess keeping him alive for as long as she had while they were in space before they were rescued by Carol did that to people.

When he got a warning from FRIDAY that there was half an hour left to the meeting, he downed another cup of black coffee, got dressed in a three piece suit - his battle armor outside of the Iron Man suit (not that the nanobot housing unit Arc Reactor wasn't attached to his chest regardless). Long gone were the days when he'd walk around in sweatpants or jeans and old and worn band shirts. There was no trust left for him in the Avengers outside of the field and there it was more out of necessity - and headed towards the meeting rooms in the north wing. He lived in the east wing himself, along with Rhodey, Nebula, Vision, Hope and Carol. Pepper, Happy, Harley, Peter, Wong, Stephen and the Guardians of the Galaxy all had rooms set up for them there, too, should there ever come a day that they might need them. The former rouges stayed in the west wing, where their rooms used to be. He'd only added a room for Loki, Thor, Bruce and their badass Valkyrie friend on a different floor in the same wing, keeping them far away from him but also keeping the Avengers, mainly Barton, far away from Loki.

The man might have saved him but Tony still didn't trust him. Still, it was a sad fact of life that he trusted the Frost Giant more than he did the noses between the original Avengers' eyes.

As always these days, he was the first to enter the room. He did this by design. It meant he got to choose where he will sit and who will sit on either side of him. Usually, it was Doctor Strange and Spider-Man - if Peter was allowed or available to come to a meeting, considering he had gone back to being the Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man and decided he _really_ didn't want to deal with any bigger stuff for now, for which Tony was grateful for - or Nebula and Rhodey. It depended on whether the Space Doughnut Team was all able to come to a meeting or not. And if for some reason Rhodes was unavailable due to his still standing job as the military liaison between SI (Tony) and the military - hey, just because he no longer makes weapons doesn't mean he's no longer providing protective gear for their soldiers or armored tanks and better communication systems. He's still a patriot, though by that these days he means more towards Earth than just the US - then Vision, Hope and Carol were always happy to take the empty seat besides him. No one wanted anyone to be uncomfortable and while most of the new additions to their roaster had no idea why Tony felt _sick_ when Rogers was too close, they helped either way.

He sat down in the middle of the left side of the long meeting table, waiting for the rest to arrive. Five minutes before the meeting should begin, an overeager Spiderling all but bounded into the room, mask in place as always, but that in no way stopped him from beaming at his mentor like the sun. Tony was still a bit confused as to why _anyone_ would look at him with that much admiration, let alone good, smart kids like Peter and Harley, though the latter was a bit better at not showing it. Not all the time, anyway. Peter usually didn't bother and would just always greet him with an excitedly chirped "Mr Stark!" Tony smiled at the teen as he settled on Tony's left side, further away from the door. Peter didn't know why, but he understood Tony didn't trust his first teammates with him and usually abides by Tony's protective - irrational, paranoid - urges, staying away from the rogues as much as he could without being obvious. If that meant sitting away from the door, technically hidden by Tony's body, where they will come through for meetings, the boy wouldn't say anything and just do it.

And if Tony was grateful to Stephen, who portaled into the Compound a moment later and joined them in a minute, for sitting to his right and practically placing himself as a barrier between Tony and the rouges when they enter moments before the meeting should start, than no one but the sorcerer needed to know.

The three of them were an odd group. Even the 'Revengers', as Thor had named his little group that had fought his sister and destroyed Asgard - Tony hadn't been sure how he felt about that, even as he helped the survivors settle in Norway after a series of negotiations with its government regarding the point - were not as weird, but the three of them were like a perfect unit, each of them bringing something important to the table, each of them smart as a whip and adaptable to whatever the situation may be. For all that Rogers wanted the 'real Avengers' to be a cohesive group 'again', no one tried to draw Tony out of the unexpected team he'd found for himself. Between magic, technology and what was basically an even more advanced supersoldier - though they usually referred to Peter ss enhanced - their experience against Thanos and with the Infinity Stones, they were the most powerful and most utilized team that was used for missions, given they had an answer for nearly every situation. No other team worked as well, either, nor was it as extendable to additional members to their core trio. Their teamwork and easy dynamics were enviable and Tony couldn't be prouder or more content. The Titan Crew, as they were called when Nebula joined them in all her alien-ness, assassin-ness knife-y self, was not to be trifled with and when Wong fought by their side, Team New York was best equipped to fight mystical threats. They were an unstoppable force and people know it.

Whenever the three of them appear on some battlefield, most bad guys opt for running. Not that they could outrun the Iron Man armor, magical portals or web-swinging heroes.

As Stephen settled down beside him, the others slowly started pouring in. Nebula was first, marching in like she owned the place, nodding to them before she settled on Stephen's other side, always preferring to be the first line of defense for their group. Vision trailed in after her, as uncertain how to deal with the fierce alien woman as always, which Tony thought was cute. He settled on her other side, exchanging greetings with the rest of them. Stark couldn't help but admire how they fit in with what appears to be the color scheme of their team, all red, blue and gold. Tony had once joked about how they should dress Wong up in gold or at the very least dye his hair, much to Stephen's immense amusement and Wong's horror. Too bad the Asian sorcerer usually had to stay in the Sanctum when Strange was out on these meetings.

He and Nebula unnerved the rouges as fuck.

Rogers was first after those two, quickly looking around as though he was checking if there was a seat free next to Tony, as though that would ever be the case, and then having this disappointed expression when he saw there was none. What was he expecting, really? It may have been almost a year since Thanos and three since the 'Civil War', but that didn't mean bygones were bygones. He'd left Tony with several new traumas he was still not used to. It was difficult to maintain a certain temperature that was neither too hot nor too cold so panic wouldn't grip him and spiral him into Afghanistan or Siberia outside of the suit or the lab, since everyone else seems to disagree with his preferred temperature everywhere else within the Compound. His chest still ached. He couldn't look in a mirror shirtless anymore and it had been hard ever since the Reactor was removed in the first place. Bunkers and storage bays made him uncomfortable. He almost didn't dare let anyone else choose things they will watch. Not to mention the whole new bag of trust issues he was suffering from, words friend and yes - that would have been interesting at the wedding - and, of course, _letters_. Things written by hand. On paper.

Or shields. Heavens but Tony was grateful FRIDAY and Dum-E had teamed up and melted his father's shield, integrating the material into Mark LI Bleeding Edge armor while he had been on Titan so his next suit was all ready for the next battle. Gotta love his mechanical kids. They take no shit and no prisoners.

The rest of the rouges piled in soon after, none of them bothering to sit on Tony's side of the table - Hope, who had quickly snatched the seat next to Peter before Rogers could get over his own pity party, unnerved most of them too much to try - where two seats remained empty until, finally, Rhodey and Carol arrived with Fury and Everett Ross, the two leaders and two liaisons of the Avengers Initiative respectively all taking their place. Carol and Rhodey were really the best choice, he down to Earth and she understanding or space, but not everyone agreed. The 'Revengers' didn't care either way as they only cared about kicking ass, though Loki always was ready to commend them for choosing better leaders than their previous one. Thor, it seems, likes Carol better than Cap these days. The only ones really having any problems with Rogers not being the leader was his little group. Even T'Challa, who was only occasionally available given the Black Panther was Wakanda's protector and king, first and foremost, agreed, thought that might have more to do with the fact that Carol seems to be capable of absorbing energy better than Vibranium due to how the Tesseract had changed her being and that kind of scared him.

Tony likes this arrangement the best, especially with no-nonsense-but-all-secrets Fury and no-nonsense-no-secrets Ross at the helm of their dealings with the UN. The Accords were still in discussion, as they will always be, but they were starting to take a shape most reasonable adults would be in agreement with. Problem was, most of the rouges were not reasonable adults. They still refused to sign Accords 7.0 that were currently in effect to stop superpowered individuals from being named _persona non grata_ in most world countries mainly due to their stupidity during the Civil War.

Tony sometimes wondered why he even bothered, but then he'd look at the Asgardians in Norway, at his new team, at Nebula, at Strange and Wong and their sort, at Peter and at Harley and he had his answer. A few bad apples didn't make the whole lot unsalvageable.

The meeting was too long and too boring to be held this early in the morning. Thankfully, it was the weekend so Peter wasn't missing out on school or anything. Fury talked long and detailed about some planned training exercises, a publicity stunt for the Avengers somewhere in Canada by helping clean up a collapsed road - Maria Stark Foundation relief efforts were already on the scene and by the day after tomorrow, when they were scheduled to head out, most if not all the damage would be cleared out and construction would be underway so so much for that - the new amendments made by the UN Council, the nominees for the new Accords Council, how General Ross' trial was going, the progress of integrating the New Asgard 'state' into the world curriculum and so on and so forth. All things Tony already knew about and things he was dealing with. He barely held back a groan when Ross picked up on the current public opinion of Avengers as a whole and certain members - he sure as hell hoped no one ever stumbled upon any Supremefamily twitter accounts. That would be embarrassing. _'But by all things good in this world, fangirls are a scary sort.'_

He _definitely _didn't want to think about how the world viewed the Avengers right now.

Feeling a headache coming on, Tony just sighed, started massaging the bridge of his nose, closed his eyes and concentrated on his breathing. He just let it all go, letting the noise be drowned under waves of numbers, becoming numb and deaf to the world-

He jolted in his chair when he unexpectedly heard a beautiful voice sing. He looked left and right, wondering who could produce the almost haunting voice, one that sounded familiar to him despite never having heard it in his life. _'At least not in my waking hours.'_

"Tony? Are you alright?"

"Yeah, fine. Just fine," he waved Stephen off, still looking around. The voice was female, that had been obvious, but he couldn't imagine any of the current members to have such a soothing tone come from their vocal cords. "Did you hear that?"

"No, I didn't hear anything," the sorcerer replied , no doubt sharing a look with Peter, who has the most advanced and enhanced hearing of them all, around him.

"I didn't hear anything, Mr Stark," the teen revealed and Tony frowned.

"Is something the matter, Stark?" Fury asks, sounding pissed and impatient but the gruff man had always had a soft spot for him and Tony could hear the barely there concerned undertones he was trying so damn hard to hide.

"No," he replied, not reacting when he heard it again, the voice, the singing. "Nothing at all." Everyone was looking at him dubiously but he ignored it. Eventually, they continued with the meeting and Tony waited and waited and waited for the singing to come back, to solve the mystery, to confront the unknown from his dreams ...

The voice stayed quiet for the rest of the meeting.


	2. Chapter 2

**Show Yourself Into The Unknown**

**Summary: The one where Thanos is dead, Tony has weird dreams instead of nightmares, the Avengers watch dubious Disney movies and mystical creatures are more than real. Oh, and the Cloak totally ships it.**

Things changed since that day and again, it was tied to his sleeping schedule and his dreams. This time, though, it was different, it was nightmarish.

For a week after the meeting, when Tony first heard the song, not two peaceful hours of the night could go by before Tony was spring up in his bed, shivering from a cold he could not fathom but that clung to him anyway. It was colder than Siberia, colder than space back in 2012, the Mark VII not made for space travel. Every night, he would hear something, he didn't know what but it called to him and he answered it. Then there was fighting, shooting, clinging of metal and clanging of bodies. The space around him was barely lit but there was a ... A _hole_ of some kind behind him and the voice was coming from there, calling, calling. Calling for _him_. Sometimes, the Avengers as a whole were vivid as they fought around him, with him. Other times, he didn't see anyone besides a man in elaborate green robes that tugged at his memory in style but he never could make the connection when reviewing the dream with himself upon waking. By the time the panic subsides, the dream is as hazy as though he'd never even seen it.

The hole in the ground is always his destination, no matter who he sees. He can't tell if he jumps in willingly or if he falls or if someone pushes him in. All he knows is that he doesn't have the armor on - he has the Arc Reactor housing unit for his nanites, though, and it's glowing; is it broken? Is he too cold to reach out and touch it to activate it? Is the wind pressure to strong for that? Is he unconscious before he can? - and the fall is long. Longer than falling from the wormhole in New York's sky, longer than it took him to sink to the bottom beneath his mansion, longer than his weird rescue mission when he made a chain out of the people that had fallen out of the airplane. It's _long_ and the further down he goes, the darker it gets. And it's colder, too. It's _freezing_. The only light is that of the Arc Reactor and the only warmth is his own. He can't see or feel anything except the cold and his own body if he twists just right so the blue light shows it.

It's suffocating. It's lonely. He's _terrified_!

And yet, just seconds before jerking awake to spare himself more trauma, he sees it.

Deep, deep down, where the darkness would drown him, there is a light, small but strong and that was usually when he'd hear it.

The voice, singing.

And then he'd awake and then he'd decide there was no way in hell he was going back to sleep just to go through that shit again. He'd been through too much for a _dream_ to add to his anxiety triggers.

And so Tony would get out of bed and try to get some work done in the lab, but he still felt that lingering cold and his hands would shake almost as bad as Stephen's and he'd give up. Instead, he'd head up to his personal living room and turn on the TV, debating what to watch. Bless FRIDAY for suggesting Disney movies. Some lightness in these dark hours would be greatly appreciated, so Tony watched them all, from the first to the newest ones. He found the classics to be lacking in comparison to the newer ones. They didn't have the same depth in character as the new films and the animation was definitely better. The songs, too. Many more of them were now more generic than just applicable to one situation and he definitely liked how strong-headed the new ever princesses were. Especially Elsa and Merida. Those two needed no man to be fucking badass and that was fact.

He found himself liking Frozen 1 and 2 the most. The second part had only recently been put out in the theaters but he was Tony Stark. He gets what he wants, when he wants it. And these days, that's apparently Disney princess movies.

What he was really struck by was the fact that the voice haunting his own nights seems to like the songs from Frozen, given it kept singing those melodies at him days after he watched the movie. Hell, he ended up learning the songs himself. They were dynamic and actually really catchy, not to mention generic enough that anyone who didn't watch the movies would think he was singing a random song from some random artist.

That didn't stop the dreams and he was starting to get stressed. It was becoming obvious to those who knew him but he did his best not to tell them why. Stark feared he was losing his mind. Hearing voices no one else can usually means just that and he'd rather not be put in a straight jacket. How was he supposed to tinker with his hands tied up!? Besides, he generally didn't like being tied up. Before Afghanistan, sure, it had been one of his kinks. Today, it'd just bring out a panic attack and ruin his night, if he even had any action these days. He kind of had trust issues the size of the sun. Though if a certain Doctor Wizard were to do it-

Tony actually slapped himself out of his thoughts, trying not to let himself get too far away with it as he was once again in an Avengers meeting. Thankfully, this one was a short one, called upon by Stephen himself regarding some magical disturbances that were happening all over the multiverse and he was giving them ample warning and instructions how to deal with it in his and Wong's absence while they and a couple of other Masters of the Mystic Arts investigate. Loki and Thor were actually going with them, Valkyrie having been left in charge of New Asgard. Tony had once again completely tuned out the meeting but he hoped Strange won't bitch about it. After months of regular, healthy, restful sleep, for the first time ever sleepless nights left Tony _beyond_ exhausted. And cold. The cold was still bothering him. He almost _wanted_ to drop himself into some desert and stay there until the feeling of ice in his veins finally melts away.

"Meeting dismissed," he heard Fury say and he all but sprinted out of the room. He needed coffee. Or a strong enough drug to keep him asleep for longer than two damn hours a night before he's woken up by falling into frigid darkness.

"Tony," he heard Stephen call calmly behind him and turned around to wait for him, only to stumble back when he nearly face-planted into his chest. "Whoa, easy there! Are you sure you're okay? You've been acting really sketchy lately? Are you sick?" The doctor mode must have switched on as the man was both steadying him and checking him fir injuries or a fever. Tony tried not to fidget, only sighing in exhaustion. He leaned into the scarred, shaking hand when it pressed against his forehead to check his temperature. It was pleasantly warm.

"I'm fine, Doc, it's just that my normal sleeping schedule finally caught up to me and I wasn't ready. I guess I got lulled by the quiet before the storm."

The taller man arched an eyebrow at that, looking like he wasn't sure whether he should believe that, before nodding in acceptance and pulling his hand away. Tony had to bite back a whine at the sudden lack of that warmth. "I'll take your word for it. Though if you need help going to sleep, you know you can always ask me for help, be it as a sorcerer or a doctor. I will do whatever I can."

And Tony was tempted. The engineer had actually made a good friend in Strange, especially after the nasty fight with Pepper and the swift/slow deterioration of their relationship. He was the only thing keeping Tony from breaking his eight years of sobriety when it was finally over, staying with him the whole night watching Disney movies. And yes, that's where FRIDAY got the idea they would help with the nightmares. In all logic, he _should_ tell Stephen. If nothing else than to just get it off of his chest. But just the thought of putting it all to words cared him. _Terrified_ him.

There was ... _something_ in him that insisted he keep this a secret. That he shouldn't tell anyone. Not now. Not _yet_. So Tony didn't. He bit his tongue, smiled at his friend and wished him a safe and successful mission instead. Stephen watched him for a moment, gauging the sincerity of his smile - which for his friends was 99.9% of the time real and genuine - before returning it and wishing him a betterment in his sleep.

If only it were that easy.

He spent the rest of that day and the next avoiding the rogues, who must have noticed his exhausted continuance as FRIDAY told him they continued to haunt his steps at every corner, only to have Vision corner him on the third day since the meeting about 'something weighing heavily on his mind'. He tried to reassure the android that he was fine, that it was just usual nightmares, but the bearer of the Mind Stone wasn't as easy to fool. In the end, Tony just asked him not to talk about it as he wasn't ready to discuss it and that had Vision reluctantly giving his assent. But his worry was still evident and it invited worry from his other friends. Nebula took to sticking to him like glue for a couple of days, which successfully discouraged the rouges from approaching as not even Rogers was insane enough to risk a knife to the gut. Or throat, if he's being truly annoying. Or if Nebula could generally get her way.

The dreams continued to be mostly unremarkable except for the singing becoming more and more pointedly Disney-sounding. He wasn't sure if that was in result to all the Disney movies he's been watching so far or if it had decided to change its tune on its own. Of course, he was considering more and more seriously each day that he was going crazy, if he wasn't already there, but he tried not to think about it as he spent a couple of hours with Peter in the lab, the two of them just hanging out, Tony showing him how to fix his suits in the possible situation that Tony himself would be unavailable to do so. The kid had a blast and Tony felt himself relax a little, but that didn't change the fact that Peter's energy left him feeling more drained than usual by the time the kid left late that afternoon.

_'Just five seconds to rest my eyes,'_ Tony swore as he settled on the old, worn but illegally comfortable couch in his lab, resting his head on the backrest. _'Just a minute.'_ He wasn't aware of sliding sideways or of Dum-E pulling the soft blanket also put on the couch over him. He was already out like a light.

_The dream was same as always, in that he found himself in some unknown location with the Avengers that felt strangely familiar despite it all. This time, though, the whole layout of the dream was quite a bit different. First off, the dream didn't start off in the middle of a battle scene or just him standing at the edge of that hole of darkness and cold. Instead, he and the Avengers were walking through some snow covered woods, trees all around. They were dressed in winter hiking gear or what could pass as such when it was designed by Tony Stark while meant for battle. For some reason, he knew that miles behind them there was a village and miles ahead, a temple-like structure of ruins awaited them. Looking to his side, he could only make out a couple of faces. Stephen and Vision were there, so at least he was sure he wasn't alone with his 'team' of old, but he could also make out Rogers and Barnes, which didn't bode well for how this dream could turn out._

_They didn't just 'appear' in the temple. The dream led him straight to and through it, showing off twisting, maze-like halls and big or small rooms. There was some sort of engraved text on the walls in a language not even Strange knew how to read but insisted was a sign that they were 'in the right place'. They kept walking for what felt like a couple of hours until they found themselves in the room with the big hole in the ground. Surprisingly enough, there was no cold coming out of it to freeze the room. It, in fact, looked kind of beautiful. It was more of a wide well than a hole, at the very least the top of it was. It was still full of darkness and the walls seem to gradually widen the further down it goes. Tony hadn't known that. That was new information._

_What wasn't new was that the singing seemed to be coming from its depths and yet Tony was still the only one who seemed to hear it._

_Then, all of a sudden, a group of enemies burst through a doorway leading to a tunnel seemingly parallel to the one they had walked and their two groups immediately clashed. Stephen wasn't using magic, for whatever reason, instead fighting hand to hand with occasional assistance from the Cloak of Levitation. Rogers and Barnes seemed considerably weaker._

_Tony wasn't fighting. Well, at first he was, but then the singing turned to calling, pleading and he found himself at the edge of the well. Everyone else was too busy fighting so no one noticed. Not until he was already taking a dive into the unknown. He heard people calling out his name but it was then all swallowed by the darkness as he fell, fell, _fell_. The cold settled in, creeping into his bones, his very being. The only light came from the Arc Reactor and he could see nothing but himself. The air was becoming thicker, denser. He didn't have his armor on, having retracted it for whatever reason just before the jump. He was scared. He was hyperventilating. The panic was starting to set in. He couldn't take it, he wanted it to stop _Please let it stop!

_And then he saw that little light deep, deep bellow. He swore it looked like a star. _No, _he realized with a near hysterical giggle, convinced he had finally cracked and it had been his own doing._ It's a _snowflake_, for fuck's sake! _He had set himself up for insanity. But he wasn't having any of it. He was _sick and tired_ of this shit! Hasn't he done enough already!? He saved the Earth three times by now, once being more of a _save the universe_ kind of situation. Was this karma for failing the first time around? Which je knew to be ridiculous. Stephen had said _one_ and that was the one they were living right now. And while Tony was perfectly aware that he was blaming himself still for that failure, this was too much._ I don't want to be here! Let me go! I want to wake up!

_But he couldn't. This time, the dream held fast, persistent, keeping him rooted in place and he wanted to _cry_, to scream himself raw and claw at his being until nothing was left. He kept falling and he was _suffocating_, pressure crushing him, the darkness overwhelming. He felt _so alone_-_

'Let it go

Let it go

Can't hold it back anymore

Let it go

Let it go

Turn away and slam the door

Here I stand'

_The voice he was by now rather intimately familiar with sang and he whimpered when it stopped. The silence was overwhelming when there had been noise just seconds ago. But apparently the silence wasn't absolute so Tony took a chance to not let it return._

_"And here I'll stay_

_Let the storm rage on!"_

'The cold will never bother you anyway.' _Tony frowned at the changed wording but didn't pay it much attention when suddenly the world around him changed. It was still all black but he was safely on solid ground that he couldn't see and, much to his relief, he was no longer cold. Perhaps the most surprising thing about _this_ particular dream was the being made seemingly entirely out of light that came to ... levitate right in front of him. He couldn't really make out the exact shape of his ... companion, but it might have been a star? It was certainly bright enough for it. _"Thank you."

_Tony kind of just blinked at the creature. He wasn't all that surprised that it could talk, per se, but something _did_ bother him. "You better not be reading my mind."_

_The creature flew to his right and if Tony didn't know better, he would think that the creature was cocking its head at him. If it _had_ a head, that is. It was impossible to tell. It shined too bright. _"You are inside your own _dream_."

_"You're in it, too," he pointed out. He should be uncomfortable, freaking out, scared, probably angry, too, that something was invading the privacy of his mind like this. He wasn't. Honest to god, he _wasn't_. For some reason, he knew the creature of light won't hurt him. "Well, inside _my_ dream but you get what I was aiming at." It darted to his other side, going around his back as though studying him from all sides. "Who are you? What's your name?"_

_The creature came up to his face suddenly and he was practically blinded. He felt something nuzzle against his cheek but he couldn't discern the texture or anything. The thing than settled against his chest and he automatically reached up to support it, earning himself a content noise that resembled a purr. "I don't have a name and you know who I am." Tony noted that the voice sounded very feminine but also kind of ... young? Can potentially-star-dream-creatures be young? Do they age? He nearly flinched when it - she - nudged his left hand, sniffing the scars. _"You're hurt!"

_"It's an old wound," he tried to reassure the glowing creature. "And yeah, I guess I sort of do? I mean, you're the one that's been keeping me awake the past week."_

_Even though he couldn't see her - he settled with just calling the creature a her, since it _sounded_ like a her - the genius got a distinct impression that she was pouting. _"I was calling out to you."

_"Yeah, well, you weren't being clear enough about that." Tony tried not to squirm as she continued sniffing at his scarred hand. He may have remained alive and kept his whole arm despite how impossible it should be given the amount of energy and radiation the Stones had released when he snapped his fingers to bring everyone Thanos dusted back, but he didn't come out of it unscathed. A good part of the left side of his body was now completely covered in rather horrific scars, a testimony of his will to live, his determination to save everyone and the skill of the people who had healed him until he was stable and healthy enough to be brought to a hospital for a natural recovery. Some people couldn't even look at the scars so Tony usually wore sleeves these days. Mostly for Peter's and Stephen's benefit. The two were too much like himself and blamed themselves for him nearly dying in his endeavor to save everyone. And even when no one was around, Tony still covered them up. He himself was rather uncomfortable with just the sight of them. "Could you please stop?"_

_The being immediately did. _"Does it hurt?"

_"No, no, the scars just ... make me extremely uncomfortable," he was quick to reassure her, somehow feeling like he was dealing with a child. "They're not pretty."_

"Scars are proof of survival." _That sounded so wrong from a voice he was recognizing was _so young_._

_"Yeah, well, I've survived many things and have many scars. These ones just don't agree with me." Silence fell over them for a while, the two of them just existing like that, only the sound of their breathing filling up the void, which Tony was thankful for. If there was anymore of that absolute silence of the fall, he would have snapped._

_He flinched, however, when he felt a new sensation on his scarred arm, starting from his fingertips and up his hands - which looked worse than Stephen's and often shook just as much - over his wrist, to his elbow and further up to his shoulder, even spreading a bit over his side and chest. At first, he couldn't determine what the sensation was but then his skin receptors caught on and he flinched even harder, trying to get away from the spreading ice._

_"Hey, watch it there, Elsa! I won't be your Olaf!" She did stop almost immediately and Tony had the distinct feeling that this was a very important moment and he had no idea why. He wished the light was just slightly dimmer so he could see her. Though he doubted she was displeased with the nickname, given she sang one of Elsa's epic songs as a way to ground him. But before either of them could react further, the ice around his arm shattered into millions of glittering particles and Tony looked down in shock and wonder at his scar-less hand._

"There!"_ Elsa - he was _so _calling this little ice star Elsa. It was _his _dream. _Fight _him on it - chirped happily, not minding the way he was shifting her around in his hold so he could better inspect the rest of his arm only to find it just as devoid of scars. It was as though Thanos had never happened. _"Now there are no more unpleasant reminders!"

_"I- How did you do that?" He asked, turning his eyes on the shinning creature in his arms. Was it just him or was her light dimming? He frowned, about to ask her if that was normal, when he heard a distant voice calling his name. Before he could blink, Elsa was gone and he was surrounded by darkness and cold again before he _was shaken out of his dream by Rhodey, who was looking down at him in worry.

"Tones, you okay? Sorry for waking you, I know you've been having trouble sleeping, but there's kind of an emergency Avengers meeting we have to attend."

"Wha- Yeah, I'm fine." And he was surprised to find that it was the truth. For once, he had not woken up feeling as cold as he had after Siberia. And he was decently well rested. "Wait, Avengers meeting? Didn't we, like, have one a few days ago?"

"Yeah, well, Strange's back and he called one right now. There's an emergency that demands our attention." Rhodey got up and offered him his hand, only for the both of them to snatch their hands away when just before they touched. "Holy shit! What the fuck, man?"

As he stared down at his hand, Tony had a disturbing realization that his dreams were much more than they seemed.


	3. Chapter 3

**Show Yourself Into The Unknown**

**Summary: The one where Thanos is dead, Tony has weird dreams instead of nightmares, the Avengers watch dubious Disney movies and mystical creatures are more than real. Oh, and the Cloak totally ships it.**

"Doctor Strange, now that we're all here, if you would be so kind as to tell us why you called us here today?" Ross asked as politely as he could while already looking beyond resigned with the situation as they all settled in their seats and turned their attention towards Stephen and Wong, both of whom looked worried and tired. Tony tried not to fidget as the two shared a look, glanced around the room before Wong actually stepped forward and began their explanation.

"As we have been aware and dealing with for the past year or so, since the Snap, the balance of the mystical world, that is magic, has been deeply disturbed by Thanos' actions. We've been fixing things one by one but it would seem something rather ... unexpected happened."

"What Wong is leading up to is the awakening of a powerful magical force or, well, a _being of magic_ in this case, in the wake of the disbalance," Stephen stepped in, looking grim. "We have thought these beings to have been extinct for a long time now. Over five hundred years here on Earth and according to Loki and Thor, even longer on Asgard."

"Since when does magic thrive longer here than on some eternal magical kingdom?" Barton asked and Tony had to agree. But, then again, they had a secret order of sorcerers bound by oath to protect their entire _reality_, so perhaps magic was just fine on Earth after all.

"Since Asgardians are glory-hungry, boastful fools who would hunt down the guardians of magic themselves to be the center of one of Odin's feasts," Loki answered derisively and Thor looked ashamed from his place beside him. Tony had no doubt the thunder god had been one of those hunters.

"Guardians of magic, huh?" Wilson echoed, looking somewhere between bored and tickled. Apparently this was not his cup of tea but he couldn't deny a curiosity, either. "What kind if creature are we looking at?"

The four that had went on this 'quest' exchanged uneasy looks and Tony himself grew tense and anxious. He had a feeling he won't like the answer. Those grave faces had been warning enough but these exchanged glances ...

He jerked in his seat when, unexpectedly, that by now familiar voice sang to him, for his ear and his ear alone. Well, at least judging by the lack of reaction from everyone else to an almost angelic voice echoing through the air. _"Why thank you,"_ Elsa chirped and Tony nearly rolled his eyes. He wondered whether he should worry that his dream was inserting itself into his waking hours but just one glance at his hand had him clenching it and hiding it further underneath the table. Thankfully, everyone was too focused on the sorcerers to see Tony's weird behavior. Well, everyone save Rhodey, who _knew_ something freaky was going on, and Stephen, who had become somewhat attuned to him ever since he came back with the rest of the dusted. Tony was just glad that the situation seemed serious enough that neither was willing to interrupt the meeting to ask whether he was okay.

He'll be lucky if Nebula hasn't also already caught on and is just waiting for enough cues to drag him away to check if something was wrong with him.

"The most powerful, ancient and magical of all, my shield brothers and sisters," Thor said dramatically, drawing both Tony's and his observers' attention back to the situation at hand. Even Elsa's voice fell quiet, not making a single sound. "A dragon."

There was a short outbreak of chaos at learning _dragons_ were alive and, well, you know, _real_, but Ross managed to get the situation back under control and gave Strange a cautious, considering look. "Is it dangerous? What do you actually expect the Avengers to _do_ about this?"

"While a dragon _can_ be dangerous, as in that it is a large, powerful, wise and ancient creature of immense magic and intellect so making an enemy out of it would be a bad idea, dragons generally don't interact with many people. If they attack, it is usually because they have been provoked or endangered by someone else's actions and they are retaliating."

"Dragons, in truth, have interactions with only a handful of selected people. People who can hear their voices and understand their words. Men and women capable of drawing a dragon out of its egg so it can be born," Wong explained, opening a small portal and taking out a dusty old tome and opening it carefully to a marked page to show off the picture on it. There they saw a Middle Ages kind of style representation of a human figure holding a dragon's head between its hands while the beast itself had wrapped around the human, as though jealously keeping it to itself or protecting it. When Wong turned to a previous page, a human holding something distinctly egg-shaped with a small head breaking through was shown, the hatching it would seem. "Their name is in dragon tongue but we have several translations. Dragon summoner - for they summon the dragon out of the egg - or dragon whisperer, as they speak their language, are the most famous ones. In truth, we have no idea what its true meaning is nor has any of us ever managed to pronounce it right. Not even the Allspeak can help with that." Something that seems to irk both Thor and Loki. How very interesting.

"The point is that the last known dragons were last sighted on Midgard," Loki jumped in, obviously impatient to ... whatever. "However, we do not know where the one that has awoken could be."

"It's a _dragon_," Lang pointed out a bit meekly. "How hard could it be?"

"Given that we do not even know what its element of nature is, we do not know where to even start our search," the older Odinson pointed out.

"And given that a _just awoken dragon_ is an _infant_ in an _egg_," Loki continued, sneering at Lang's uninformed self and Ant Man seemed to shrink in on himself even without the use of his suit. "And that _Midgardians_ have _hunted_ the last dragons into exile or extinction, we do not know, it is nary _impossible_ to find it as no responsible dragoness mother would leave her egg somewhere where it can be destroyed before the one meant to hatch it finds it."

"Right," mumbled the man, not looking up.

"So, how _do_ we find it and should we at all?" Rogers asked and it was, for once, a rather intelligent question. "I mean, this seems to fall out of our jurisdiction. What should we do?"

"Usually, matters like these fall out of even the Sorcerer Supreme's jurisdiction and we would usually leave it all well enough alone, but it is different this time," Stephen sighed, running a hand through his hair, messing it up a bit. This was the first time ever that Tony had seen him genuinely disheveled. Even on Titan, in the aftermath and after the reversed snap, Stephen Strange had been composed and collected, regardless of the bloody gash on his forehead and the dirt clinging to his clothes. Tony swallowed a lump in his throat. This _really_ couldn't be good.

"How?" Romanoff spoke up for the first time since the meeting started, eyeing the sorcerers suspiciously.

"Because, as we have said, dragons were thought to be _extinct_," Wong stressed. "We knew that there was at least _one_ last dragon out there - if not, the world would have fallen into disarray a long time ago and there would have been nothing that could stop magic from tearing existence apart - but we never knew where, whether it was dormant or awake, if its 'summoner' was still alive and with it and so on. We only knew it existed and we only knew it was the minimum of _one_. Now, a new dragon is waking up. We do not know if it is the one that has been holding up the balance even though it is just an egg or if there is a senior for it somewhere out there. We do not know how far an adult dragon might be, if one still exists, and if they could arrive in time to assist the young one after hatching."

"Then what _do_ you know?" Maximoff asked with a scoff but flinched under Wong's glare.

"All we know is that it's here, on Earth," Strange answered for his companion while the librarian was busy glaring at the Scarlet Witch. "And that a rogue sorcerer by the name of Karl Mordo is aware that it is awakening and that it is here."

Well, _that_ didn't sound good. Not at _all_.

"You said that dragons are guardians of magic and that the universe would be torn apart by it if they truly went extinct," Tony pointed out/observed/asked, garnering the attention of the room. He focused only on the three magic users. "I'm taking it we'll be heading out to save this last dragon regardless of where it's dragon whisperer might be?"

"Mordo won't _kill_ the dragon - that would be a death sentence to us all," Wong explained but nodded to his assessment. "However, even a dragon still in its egg is a dangerous 'possession'. Dragons are practically _pure magic_. Their power has never been measured to see its limits. Mordo - or anyone else - could do a lot of damage if he were to get its hands on it."

"Not to mention that he'd practically have us by our balls," Strange said with a snort. "He'd just have to threat to damage the egg and we'd be obliged to do as he says."

"Well, that sucks," Tony's honey-bear grumbled. "So should we go grab a copy of Fantastic Beasts And Where To Find Them or ... ?"

Tony, Barnes, Lang and Wilson couldn't help but snort but the sorcerers only remained extremely exasperated. "Unfortunately, all we can do is wait. At least for now. A dragon's awakening lasts about a year, according to the texts we've fathered between us," Wong gestured to Loki and Thor. "It supposedly calls out to its summoner in their dreams and in the last month or so, depending on the dragon, it does so in waking hours." Tony went ramrod straight, doing his best not to let his eyes pop out or his jaw drop. "Supposedly about a fortnight before it is ready to hatch, a strong pulse of magic will travel across the ley lines of the universe and all who practice will feel it."

"And that happened last week, when I called a meeting to inform you of my upcoming absence," the former neurosurgeon pointed out. "And last night, there was another one, this one labeled as 'the singing call' in all the texts we've found. Basically, it means that the dragon is days away from being ready to hatch and it is calling to its chosen or destined summoner/whisperer. Texts about this period, while vague, suggest that the dragon can from this point on communicate with its summoner. Other than that, we have no more information to share, only that as soon as the summoner answers the call, the dragon's magical signature will become recognizable and _traceable_."

"Which means that we will be able to find it, but so will others," Loki elaborated, always feeling he was dealing with idiots and Tony usually didn't blame him and played mock offended every time for hilarity's sake. This time, though, he was too numb with shock to do so.

"Which in turn means we must be ready to set out on this quest at a moment's notice," Thor finished, sharing a nod with Strange. "We have called this meeting to inform you to pack the necessities you might need. As soon as we get even a hint of the dragon's location, we must find it."

"But what of its ... _summoner_?" Banner asked, looking unsure and highly uncomfortable with the prospect of hunting down a mystical beast that should have been no more than a legend. But really, Tony wasn't nearly as surprised as he ought to be. Then again, they _did_ live in a world of cyborgs, androids, homicidal AIs, all powerful sparkly rocks, sorcerers, aliens, gods, spider-bitten super-teens, flying suits of armor, rage monsters, space wales, talking raccoons, sentient trees and enhanced people. Why should a _dragon_ be weird? "I thought it can't hatch without them?"

"Getting the egg to a safe location is our primary goal. Its summoner will eventually feel its call and find it on his own. We'll then make sure they both stay okay and are taught whatever they might need to be regarding their new bond until the dragon has grown and matured enough to protect them both and share its power with its summoner."

"So, what? We wait for the big signal, find it, extract it, bring it here, keep it safe and then train whoever comes to pick it up?" Carol asked, summing it up. "Sounds easy enough."

"I rather doubt a mother dragon would leave her egg some place that is easy to get in and get out of," Wong pointedly said, voice deadpan.

"How long will the egg be able to wait for the summoner, though?" Hope asked, finally inserting herself in the conversation. "Will a longer wait in any negative way affect the dragon in the long run?"

"It's been waiting for centuries. It can wait a few days longer," Loki replied smoothly.

"You said the dragon gives its whisperer power," Vision said, frowning in worry. "How can we be sure such power won't be used for misdeeds? If a dragon is as powerful as you say it is, we could have a serious problem on our hands soon enough."

"Dragon summoners, by default, are usually people with pure hearts and even more pure souls," Thor was actually the one to answer. "Fate itself usually chooses people who will not abuse the power they are gifted for the sole reason that that much power is a temptation and it _corrupts_. You are indeed wise to fear what would happen if the power or a dragon were to fall into the wrong hands, my young friend."

"So it's imperative that we get to the dragon first," Rogers concluded and everyone else nodded. "When do we star?"

"As soon as we actually know where to look," the Asian sorcerer reminded. "it should be any day now, though, so be prepared. As soon as we find out the general location, we must make haste to get to the egg before it can fall into the wrong hands."

"I guess I can only say pack for any situation. In this, unfortunately, we are going blind." As soon as strange stopped talking, plans were being made about what sort of gear they should take and Tony decided he was no longer needed, so he got up and headed straight for his lab, activating lock-down mode as soon as the doors closed behind him. He needed a moment to himself.

"Boss, I am detecting high levels of stress. Is something wrong?"

"No, FRI, I just need some time to tinker, I think. Please pull up my latest armor updates, will you baby-girl?"

"Of course," his AI replied even as holograms sprang to life around him and Dum-E wheeled over with a steaming cup of coffee in his claw. It would seem his earliest AI had finally managed to get it right. Tony patted him on his metal arm, chuckling at the happy beeping that earned him before he turned to his ongoing project and forced himself to focus on that and _not_ on the meeting they had just had and what that might mean. No, it had nothing to do with him. His dreams were just dreams, albeit weird as hell, but still only dreams, meaning _not real_, imaginary. A product of a tired and stressed mind, nothing more.

"Boss, Doctor Strange wishes to speak with you."

Tony didn't even look up from his work. "Is it urging?"

FRIDAY paused, obviously asking the man before she got back to him. "No, but he has expressed his concern at your abrupt exit earlier. Should I let him in?"

He paused at that, thinking. While he usually wouldn't hesitate to spent some time with Stephen to enjoy some stimulating, pleasant conversation, right now he only wanted to be lost in numbers and figures and formulas, things that he was familiar and comfortable with instead of worrying about how the world around him was either changing or crumbling. He was reluctant, hesitating for one second more, before he steeled his resolve and shook his head. "No. I ... Don't really feel like talking right now. Can you-"

"Of course, Boss." FRIDAY quickly relayed the message to the sorcerer and pinged back to him within the minute. "He says to just call him if you need to talk or anything else."

"I swear that man is either a godsend or a saint," he mumbled under his breath, making a note to himself to make it up to the man at a later date, when he wasn't seconds away from spiraling into an anxiety attack due to what he had heard not half an hour ago.

But he was in his little sanctuary now, surrounded by his bots and his doors were locked. He felt himself relax little by little as he got lost in his work, completely absorbed in what he was doing, the racing of his thoughts. The harmony of his machines and one of his rock 'n' roll albums filled his ears, helping him completely immerse himself in the designs in front of him and forget the world outside of his workshop, outside of his suit and the ideas that swirled through his mind about the upgrades he was making.

When the voice came at close to midnight, Tony was unsure whether it was welcome or not. He sighed and shut down his work, saving his progress as he walked towards his elevator, glaring at his vague reflection in the metal when the doors closed. He kind of went 'fuck it" since apparently his constant little whisper loved Disney songs so much.

"I can hear you

But I won't

Some look for trouble

While others don't

There's a thousand reasons

I should go about my day

And ignore your whisper

Which I wish would go away ooh." As expected, 'Elsa' just sang back to him in the same way that magical spirit did at Elsa in Frozen and he huffed. Of _course_ he'd somehow end up befriending someone as ironic as himself. Stephen Strange was the perfect example. He continued singing at the voice as he walked down the hallways of the Avengers Compound, trying not to feel silly for acting like a Disney character and, even worse, a Disney _princess_. This is _so_ not what he imagined life would be like just a year ago. And it's not even been a whole year! Why was life always weird with him? Never a dull moment ... He'd appreciate one every once in a while, though. "You're not a voice

You're just a ringing in my ear

And if I heard you-"

_"Which you don't?"_ Well, _that_ surprised him but he didn't falter in song or step. It would seem 'Elsa' liked playing games.

"I'm spoken for I fear

Everyone I've ever loved

Is here within these halls."

_"Are they?"_ The being from his dreams asked and Tony rolled his eyes, not even blinking at the modifications he made to the lyrics as he went, walking towards the kitchen's floor to ceiling windows overlooking the 'front yard'.

"I'm sorry, secret siren

But I'm blocking out your calls!

I've had my adventure

I'm not looking for something new."

_"Are you sure?"_

"I'm afraid of I might risk

If I follow you

Into the unknown!" And that's his biggest fear. As Iron Man, there will always be 'something new', and adventure, but venturing out to seek things out like that could put Rhodey, Pepper, Happy, Harley, Peter, Nebula, Vision, Stephen and everyone else in danger. The fear gripped him in a tight, cold fist but 'Elsa' just continued signing like the natural spirits from Frozen 2. He wondered how she even knew about those. Then again, he _had_ been watching Disney movies a lot. He sighed and walked outside, looking around as though _that_ would let him see her. Not that he'd _seen_ her in his dream, either. She'd kind of been a mass of (cuddly) light. He recalled thinking of her as a star but he realized he was mistaken. She was much prettier.

Her giggly response shouldn't be so _cute_. _"Why thank you!"_

"What do you want?" He asked, still keeping the tune since they had already gotten that far, sitting down on the grass and staring up at the stars. It's been a very long time since he'd dared look up at the night sky. Space wasn't his favorite place, after all. "'Cause you've been keeping me awake?

Are you here to distract me

So I'll make a big mistake?" He hesitated, remembering the pang of sympathy he'd felt for a fictional, animated character when he'd heard the song the first time. He actually somewhat understood what it was like for Elsa. Was _his_ 'Elsa' lonely like that as well? "Or are you someone out there

Who's a little bit like me

Who knows deep down"

_"We're not where we're meant to be?"_

Tony smiled sadly at the truth behind those words even as his hand came up to grip his hair in frustration. "Every day's a little harder

As I feel your power grow," just _looking_ at his left hand now left him gulping in unease and staring in awe at the same time. It was something he was completely unfamiliar with and that should have made him run in the other direction. But it didn't. Instead, it aroused his curiosity. "Don't you know

A part of me

Longs to go

Into the unknown!" He couldn't help a smile as 'Elsa' joined him in the choirs, their voices melding together in a beautiful melody only he could hear. Gods, he hoped everyone was fast asleep. They'd think him crazy if they saw and heard him singing a kids movie song to the moon and the stars. "Oh oh oh!

Are you out there?"

_"Do you know me?_

_Can you feel me?"_

"Will you show me?"

Something in his chest thudded and _pulled_ as their voices once again fit into a perfect harmony, taking each other to new heights until Tony felt like he was flying. His heart echoed a beat not his own as they carried through the song. Then, he felt a tug and his head snapped towards the horizon, where he swears one star was _dancing_ in the sky, just above the tree line. As if sensing it had his attention, the star gave one more twirl and jump before beginning descending beyond his sight. Without thought, the billionaire found himself on his feet, running forwards in its direction, hand coming in front of him, outstretched as if to grab hold of the dancing star despite how irrational the notion was. Seeing that his companion wasn't waiting for him, Tony resorted to Disney levels of dramatics and did his best to sing through the sprint. Movies never got this part right.

"Where are you going?

Don't leave me alone.

How do I

Follow you

Into the unknown!?"

And as if to spite his earlier thoughts regarding dramatics, in an eerily similar manner to how it happened in the movie itself, the little star burst into a huge shock wave of light across the sky, leaving behind a big flash that would surely wake up all of the Avengers currently at the Compound as practically all of them slept with the blinds open lest they spend the entire day in the too comfortable beds Tony had provided them with. Tony winced at the thought of the questions they'll no doubt be asking - _demanding_ \- of him. But all thoughts of his - unfortunately - teammates pretty much fled from his mind when he realized particles were raining down from the sky in a gentle cascade and the horizon was still lit with a white, blue, pink and light purple Aurora Borealis.

"Oh shit," he muttered to himself even as he extended a hand to catch them.

"Tony? What happened?! Are you _alright_?!"

"What the hell did you do?!"

Carol's and Maximoff's voices came from behind him and he didn't even turn around to look at them, eyes still glued to the particle of light that wasn't really light at all as it melted against his hand and his skin absorbed the tiny droplets of water.

"Oh _shit_."


	4. Chapter 4

**Show Yourself Into The Unknown**

**Summary: The one where Thanos is dead, Tony has weird dreams instead of nightmares, the Avengers watch dubious Disney movies and mystical creatures are more than real. Oh, and the Cloak totally ships it.**

"Are you all packed?" Doctor Stephen Strange asked the very next morning as they gathered in front of the landing stripe of the Avengers Compound, looking at each of them in their winter gear, save for Loki, who didn't feel the cold as he was a Frost Giant and actually _thrived_ in this weather, Vision and Nebula, who were an android and cyborg respectively so they weren't sensitive to the cold. Even Strange himself was bundled up in thicker blue robes and some yellow gloves to protect him from the cold, though both he and Wong insisted that living magic kept them warm enough even without heating or isolation spells being cast on their clothing. "I sure hope so because anyone who stays behind is left behind, to quote the Pirates of the Caribbean Pirate Code. We can't afford to waste any more time. Not when the dragon's location is now perfectly traceable."

"Yeah, we're all set, Doc," Tony found himself replying with fake cheer, not really looking forwards to this little excursion, for several reasons. And very few of them actually had to do with the confirmation he'd received as of last night as to 'Elsa's' _true_ nature, though why she appeared to him like a star was beyond him. Hell, he was even looking forward to meeting her, even though he didn't believe he was the right choice to be her ... summoner or whatever. No, what really bothered Tony was much, much less supernatural. "North Norway, here we come."

The bitterness in his tone must have been obvious because Stephen sent him this soft, concerned glance before going back to stoic neutrality as he addressed them all. "If any of you should doubt their presence to this mission, now would be the time to back out. I'm not going to portal you all back one by one just because you got sick of the cold."

"Steve, I really think you and Barnes should stay back." Wilson, the only even remotely sane, though not very smart, of the former rouges all but _pleaded_ with the Captain but Rogers was nothing if not idiotically stubborn, unconventionally so. Barnes, though, like a good best friend that he was, had no choice but to be with him 'till the end of the line' and as such was going with them, though he looked grim. Rogers obviously wasn't taking into account just how low the temperatures will be when they step through Stephen's portal or how the sudden change may affect him and Barnes, who have both spent seventy years in fucking _ice_.

_'Then again, it hadn't really bothered them when they were teaming up on me in Siberia, either,'_ he thought bitterly but didn't allow himself to dwell on it too much. Not when he was probably about to step into the land of his own nightmares. Cold, snow, whipping winds and probably _caves_ because _where else_ would a _dragon_ hide its very _magical_ egg but a _fucking cave_? Tony wasn't comfortable with this. He wanted to back out. Stephen had probably even offered it for _his_ benefit, knowing the struggle Tony dealt with regarding all those themes alone and it will only be worse when they're put together. A fucking nightmare, really. Maximoff couldn't have done a better job in creating a better torture method and she was sick in the head, no matter what anyone said to convince him otherwise. You do _not_ join a terrorist organization just because you lost someone! At the very least not a Nazi one! Not _HYDRA_. But whatever. That wasn't the point. The point _was_ that Tony should back out and just let the others take care of it, but there was only one small problem with all of that.

"We can't back out of a mission when we're needed just because it's a bit chilly, Sam," the blond supersoldier said with a chuckle and Tony saw Hope roll her eyes while Nebula gave one of those twitches of hers that indicated she wanted to reach for a knife _so bad_. Tony could agree with the sentiment. Though he would probably use the knife to end his own misery if he's given the chance. He's dealt with the 'Avengers' for long enough to realize any opportunity to free himself of them, even at the cost of his own life, was well worth it.

"I don't _need_ you out there, Rogers," Strange corrected sharply, arching an eyebrow at him, unimpressed. "Mordo is a powerful, skilled, _experienced _sorcerer. I don't need strength and shields. I _need _speed, agility, maneuverability and adaptability at any given moment. Given you can't even _fly_, you are more of a liability and a nuisance even without counting for possible trauma-reactions you might experience along the way."

Well, Tony was pretty sure no one had put Rogers in his place as effectively, ever, as Stephen had. Then again, considering the urgency of the situation, it probably called for it or else petty in-fights might cost them a dragon. And seeing as to what the consequences of that might be and that it's Strange's duty to make sure that doesn't happen, the man was bound to be of a much shorter temperament while they are on this mission. Add to all of that that Stephen had no love lost towards Rogers and it made for a very snappy, very impatient Sorcerer Supreme and he wasn't even sorry about it. It at least got Rogers to shut up even if it didn't prevent him from mulishly going through the portal first when Stephen opened it. Tony was half expecting the sorcerer to just close it and leave the Captain wherever it is he had landed and for him to open another for the rest of them. If the situation were any less dire, Tony was sure his friend would have given into the temptation of stranding the man someplace unpleasant but it is what it is and Tony was instead grateful when the sorcerer was there to grab his wrist and lead him last through the spinning circle of sparks so no one would see his anxiety.

The world was washed in white when they stepped through, even if the sky was dark and they would have to hike during the night. Still, the winter landscape was beautiful, even though Tony was no fan of snow, woods or 60% of his company. The trees were covered in snow and ice, the ground as well, the white ice dust unblemished by anyone except a few stray creature's paw prints and the wind was surprisingly agreeable with them. What surprised Tony the most, though, was that it didn't appear to be all that cold.

"Man," Wilson muttered a few feet in front of him, huddling in on himself as though to preserve the warmth. "It's cold as fuck out here!"

"It's not that bad," Tony commented, having honestly expected much worse. The temperatures weren't low enough to trigger anxiety in him, for which he was grateful. "I've had worse." He was irked that Rogers didn't seem even remotely apologetic of guilty at hearing that. Barnes did and that guy had no place feeling any sort of guilt whatsoever. He had at least_ apologized_, for both what HYDRA had made him do and for fighting against him in Siberia. As if any of it was really his fault. Even in Siberia, he was reacting to a situation Rogers had put him into.

"Not all of us have been to space, Tony," Natasha retorted and even she was trembling a little despite doing her best not to be bothered by the low temperature or at the very least not _show_ it so obviously. He tried not to flinch, not to remind her what he'd been through out there, that if to anyone, this should be the worse for him, that such comments were only going to make it worse.

"You say that like it's something to be envied," Stephen, as always, took no bullshit and given the friendship they've been developing ever since the reversal of the Snap, Tony wasn't even surprised that the man had jumped to his rescue, so to speak. Not that he appreciated the comment for himself, either. Both he and Peter had been there right alongside Tony during the entire journey and they had no more a pleasant trip than Tony had. To be expected. When people think about traveling to space, they imagine some of those sci-fi movies where the protagonists meet a new alien race and either become allies or have to fight their way back to Earth lest they become lien chow.

The reality of Tony's first trip to space was much worse.

The reality of the second one was so much more nightmarish than anything a movie industry could hope to produce.

'_They're just lucky_ _Peter wasn't around. I don't think either Stephen or I would have appreciated them accidentally bringing the trauma and the nightmares back.'_

"That aside," he rushed in, deciding this was just a waste of time, something they apparently didn't have all that much of given it was practically a race to a, of all things, dragon egg whose demise might lead to all of his hard work in saving the universe to be undone. Something he didn't really appreciate. "Which way do we go now, Doc? You said we can trace it now, so chop to it."

Strange sent one last glare at the redhead spy before letting it go and looking straight at Tony. "We portaled as close as we could. We'll have to go on foot from here, which isn't really ideal as the dragon's location could be just a few feet away or several _miles_. However, we have a strong reason to believe we're due further north."

"_More_ north?! Why!? It's bellow freezing already!" Lang, who was already shivering, whined and Tony didn't blame him. He was surprised he wasn't joining him in suffering from the cold.

"There's less population further north, so it's more likely for a mother dragon to hide her egg there, away from the humans so intent on hunting her kind," Wong explained, already turning around to begin the march. "No more questions. Come. Time is slipping."

No one complained or made any arguments, following after the two sorcerers who seemed mostly unbothered by the weather. Then again, between their thick robes, heating spell and half of their time being spent practically at the bottom of Everest, they probably weren't. Tony wasn't suffering from the cold, either. IN fact, he seemed to be holding it together better than Rogers by a long shot. Though Barnes worried him a bit, seeing as his face had gone completely withdrawn and blank, almost reminding Tony of that day when he'd nearly shot him in the face in the UN building had it not been for his repulsor watch. Loki seemed fine, but the guy belonged to a race called _Frost Giants _so he figured that made sense, even though Thor seemed to be red-nosed next to him, but not suffering from the biting cold too much, either. Carol was like a living furnace between her powers and the Kree blood running through her veins and Rhodey seemed to be taking advantage of that, sticking as close to his almost-but-not-really-not-quite-yet girlfriend as he could get away with. Bruce seemed to be holding it together better than the rest of the group, but he'd shiver every now and then and Valkyrie, who had joined them on this quest to look after her king and prince - because they were, in her own eloquent words, complete morons - seemed intent on keeping herself warm by drinking enough of the good stuff Tony gave her as a present every time she stopped by. The woman _deserved _it for being such a badass. Vision and Nebula didn't seem too bothered either, though Tony worried a bit for their circuits. The cold could do some serious damage to mechanics.

They walked for what felt like hours, trying not to think about the actual passage of time or the distance they'd walked, afraid it might cost them their motivation to continue going forward. Tony kept a wary eye on their surroundings through the skying glasses he'd made out of his nanites, scanning everything in sight and trying not to shiver every time he saw a wolf or a bear come too close to their group, obviously hungry and drawn to human pray but always scuttling away with just a whiff of their scents, deeming them too big of a bite. Even a mama bear with two cubs just turned away, which Tony was grateful for. He wouldn't have been able to shoot at the animals and live with himself if he hurt them. Though he did wonder who or what had scared them away from them. Thor and the smell of lightning? Loki and his more dangerous true nature, his frigid cold? Banner and the Hulk resting deep within the short man's body? Carol's half-Kree scent? Or maybe the supersoldier pheromones that Rogers and Barnes probably didn't even realize humans still emitted, as science had proved? Or it could just be the madness rolling off of Maximoff in waves due to the nature of her powers even if she was perfectly calm right now. Well, she might be slightly pissed off due to the cold, but she wasn't in the mood to go around mindfucking people.

Either way they spent a good part of the first three hours of the night walking with barely a pause, weaving through the trees and avoiding any that had too much snow on their branches, before they seemed to be less dense in the upcoming area. Tony figured they were nearing a settlement and nearly sighed in relief. "If the place in front of us turns out to be the north pole or something and there are flying remainders with red glowing noses, short people with pointy ears and green weird-ass clothes and a chuckling fat man with a beard invites us to cookies, I'm gonna go back to Titan and put myself out of my miseries."

"If we do, I might go out of my way to slit some throats," Nebula said with nary a blink as she came to walk on his left, him being left to Strange as they marched through the deep, creaking snow. "What you described sounds disturbing."

"Isn't that the Santa Clause character you've explained to me once?" Tony chuckled at Nebula's alien-ess and Vision's continued naivety and almost childish curiosity. People really _do_ tend to forget just how young the android is. Just because he carried one of the most powerful objects in the universe and had developed from an AI that had the Internet practically as its playground for years didn't erase the fact that Vision should be only a toddler. He didn't have most of the basic life experiences one gets as they age and live their lives. Viz deserved to be a child as much as he could, even if it was in rare instances as these.

"I guess we'll find out if the magic of Christmas is a real thing, right, Strange?"

The man in question just snorted at Barton but had no time to say anything when the Cloak suddenly tugged him to the side, pulling him out of the way of a sailing spear seconds before it could impale him. Immediately, everyone was in fighting stances, covered in armor, channeling Tesseract energy and lightning or brandishing magical shields. They could seriously use Peter and his spider senses right about now.

_"To you left!" _Tony heeded the instructions even before it registered that none of his teammates had spoken as yet another spear missed an tried not to panic when he realized the tip was glowing with a green energy that immediately melted the snow when it hit the ground in a fiery blaze. Just a graze of that would have put one of them in serious dangers of third degree burns.

"We're surrounded," Wong told them calmly, easily deflecting three arrows fired his way, even covering Lang's back when another spear nearly got him.

"It's not Mordo."

"Doesn't mean they're any less dangerous," Carol reminded Stephen, firing a photon blast where she caught movement through the trees but it would seem she'd done nothing more than melt snow in a straight line, which seemed to annoy her.

"Gather in a circle," Rhodey instructed, taking charge as he and Tony tried to scan the area, searching for heat signatures. "We need to watch each other's back or else we'll get picked out one by one and we don't know what or whom we're dealing with."

_"From above!"_ Tony looked up and saw an archer, quickly pointing a repulsor at them and firing, breaking their branch and causing them to fall. He watched in astonishment as a gust of wind seemed to pick the archer out of thin air and land him on a second tree, on a thicker branch.

"Guys, these people have some weird sort of magic or something and I think it's connected to the forest!" He called out, taking to the air and doing a three sixty scan of the area. He nearly smashed into a tree when the wind picked up again, seemingly trapping him in a sphere. "Oh, hell to the no! I survived a fucking moon being thrown at me. No _way_ is a bit of wind going to be my downfall."

"Stephen!"

"I got it," the Sorcerer Supreme called back to his sorcerer friend before the area lit up all around them and several dozen people cried out in pain as the light assaulted the eyes of everyone outside of the circle of Avengers. With the woods no longer so dark, everyone could easily make out where their attackers were hiding and they all set about apprehending as many of them as they could. Wong and Stephen proved invaluable in this endeavor as they used those red chain things to wrap them up and bring them before the group. "My name is Doctor Stephen Strange, Sorcerer Supreme of Earth and the Master of the New York Sanctum Sanctorum. State your intentions for attacking us."

The people, dressed in some sort of leather and furs outfits that looked to be almost from prehistory, stopped struggling and looked up at Stephen, something like relief and sheepishness bleeding into most of their demeanor. "We apologize, Master Strange, we thought you were another group of desecrators seeking out the Temple of Ahtohallan, trying to steal that which is not their's to have."

"We are the Sami from the magical community of Northuldra," a woman that seemed to have the most elaborate clothing said by way of greeting. "I am Aidna, one of the three leaders of our people, the huntress. I apologize for attacking you, but you must understand. For millennia, we have been tasked with protecting the Temple of Ahtohallan. It is our sworn duty yo keep it safe and given what has happened just last night, we are busier than ever. All who seek the dragon egg have come to our forest. We have trouble and little time to discern friend from foe."

"We are here to relieve you of your duties," Strange calmly said, releasing the hunting/warrior group. "It has been decided that Kamar-Taj will take in both dragon and dragon summoner for both their sake. Please, tell us where it is? Time is running out. We know of a sorcerer who _will_ come for the egg and nothing good will result from it."

Aidna, who looked to be not that much older than Tony, shook her head sadly in a negative. "I wish I could assist you in this, Master Strange, but _in this_ we can only assist the one whom the dragon calls."

"I thought the egg's location was lost ages ago. How did _you_ know it?" Natasha asked, arching a suspicious eyebrow at the group. A young man about Rogers' real age, not counting the years in the ice, scuffed.

"Our people has been tasked with hiding and protecting the egg by the last dragons of Earth themselves. The Sorcerers Supreme of the past have acknowledge and approved of this decision. While we fall under the jurisdiction of Kamar-Taj, we are a separate group meant to protect this forest, the Temple it houses and the treasure which it hides. We have been doing so since the egg has been handed over to us and we will continue doing so until the summoner comes."

"You've just admitted that you're practically overwhelmed by people coming to search for the egg. Better ship it off to Hogwarts, where they have more people and better protections to keep it safe," Barton said casually, though he was glaring at the archer that Tony had nearly knocked down. It was clear he didn't really care what happened to the egg either way, he just wanted to show off he was the best archer and then go back to their warm Compound and hot chocolate.

"As Kamar-Taj guards the Eye of Agamotto and time itself, we guard the egg and the very key to the balance of the multiverse and it's continued existence. I'm afraid the answer is still no," Aidna said resolutely and Tony felt a bit of dread when Rogers stepped up, trying to loom over the shorter woman but she didn't back down, challenging him, standing her ground. Tony knew how much Rogers' couldn't stand someone standing their ground against him. He'd felt the consequences on his own skin, so he was quick to walk up to Aidna on the other side, offering his hand.

"Hey, if that's your deal, okay then," he ignored the offended cries and protests from his teammates, meeting Strange's eyes over her head on the other side, ignoring Rogers altogether. Aidna turned to regard him, suspicious, and he gave her his most charming smile, the ones he usually reserves for the kids he visits in schools, orphanages and hospitals, genuine but bright enough to light up their rough days and make them feel special for having his attention. Sometimes a little attention is all a child needs. Aidna didn't seem as taken by it, but Tony figured she just refused to risk being blindsided by charm and then tricked or assaulted. It was clear she took her job seriously and while her comparison to the protection of the Time Stone probably wasn't the best one, she didn't exactly know it's Keeper had went and given it up for the survival of one man. "Hello, I'm Tony Stark. You might have heard of me." He kept is hand extended even as he called back his nanites so he would seem more like a friendly than a potential enemy trying to screw her over. "As I was saying, if that's your deal, then so be it. But I insist that you let us stay and help you fight off any threats to the egg or your own community until the right person arrives. Do we have a deal?"

"Why didn't _you_ think of that, oh master of bargains?" Tony overheard Wong mutter to Stephen but tried not to show any reactions to it, keeping instead his eyes locked with Aidna's. The woman was studying him in a way that almost made him feel uncomfortable but he was used to it. Wong and Strange sometimes did it, too, but this woman was a stranger so it was kind of unnerving.

Finally, she let out a sigh and gave a conceding nod, reaching for his hand for a shake. "Unfortunately, I will have to take you up on the offer. However, I don't think letting you near the Temple-" She stopped talking as soon as their hand touched and a jolt ran through them both, making him take his hand back with a flinch. Strange was on guard within the moment and the rest weren't behind him. However, Aidna's face showed only something akin to awe as she sated down at her hand where she had touched him before turning light green eyes on him and Tony grew uncomfortable as the awe intensified. "-at this time of night would be wise where safety is concerned. We have guards in place for tonight. First thing tomorrow, at dawn, we will lead you to the Temple of Ahtohallan, Tony Stark."

Tony blinked, not really expecting to get what they had wanted but glad they had gotten their way anyway. "Thank you. You honor us with your trust."

"It is we who should be honored by your generosity," the woman replies and even bows her head a little so Tony does the same, knowing some cultures did this to show gratitude and respect. He didn't want to offend them or westernize their obviously very old but holding strong culture. "Please come, my friends. We will provide you with accommodations for the night and take you to the Temple come dawn."

The Avengers all exchanged a look before Tony just shrugged and walked over to stand on Aidna's left. "Lead the way."

He did his best to ignore how giddy Elsa's song sounded as they walked in the night.


	5. Chapter 5

**Show Yourself Into The Unknown**

**Summary: The one where Thanos is dead, Tony has weird dreams instead of nightmares, the Avengers watch dubious Disney movies and mystical creatures are more than real. Oh, and the Cloak totally ships it.**

_"I can't believe you're almost here!" Elsa said by way of greeting the second Tony became aware of his dreams. For some reason he won't question too much, he'd 'woken up' already in Elsa's 'place' and hadn't had to go through the nightmarish experience of falling through that frigid cold darkness like he'd had to the first time around, something he was extremely grateful for as he had more than grown sick of falling down that hole/well whatever thing. Instead, he was now sitting against something he couldn't see with the ball of light once again cuddling up to him. Only now he knew what she was, what _he_ was supposed to be and what _they_ were supposed to become. And 'Elsa' probably knew that, too, though it would seem that didn't change her demeanor or interactions with him one bit, at least not in her book._

_Tony still didn't know what to think of it all._

_"And where _is_ 'here'?" He asked, trying to look around but, as always, all he could see was himself and Elsa's immense light. He wasn't sure if she was doing that herself, on purpose, or if she had no control over it. Still, her light was a welcome change to all the darkness around them so he wasn't making much of a fuss. The more light the better, after all. However, there were still things he'd like to know and what Elsa actually looked like was one of them. He guessed he'd just have to wait for a little while before he can find out._

_"The Well of Ahtohallan, or so I heard the humans calling it every time they came to check up on it. It's inside the temple they'll be taking you to in a few hours time!"_

_"Okay, but why does that name sound so familiar?" He asked, more to himself than to his companion and she didn't seem particularly eager to share the joke for she giggled mischievously and refused to answer him when he asked for an explanation. Tony huffed and flicked her forehead - or at least what he _thought_ was her forehead as it was still impossible to tell any of her features apart - making her squeak in protest. "Fine. I'll figure it out eventually on my own. I _am_ a genius, you know." Elsa said nothing to that though she might have rolled her eyes at him. Not that Tony could know. Damned lights. "Is it always going to be like this? You invading my dreams?"_

_"I don't know," he felt her shrug in his hold as he hugged her close, enjoying the way her purr vibrated through her entire body and into his own chest. "The dreams are a calling. I just wanted you to come. I've been lonely without you."_

_"You've woken up only recently, though."_

_The little dragon only shook her head against his chest where she had snuggled close. "I may have been awake and aware in the human definition of the word for less than a year but I have in fact been aware of the world for the past seven centuries and a dragon's incubation cycle lasts all of five weeks before a egg is physically ready to hatch. After that, we simply wait for our Ib to come to us. Many dragons, like myself, have had to wait for centuries just for their Ib to be born."_

_"Ib?" Tony asked, not sure why that word resonated with him stronger than the rest of what just been revealed to him. Elsa had, after all, just told him her true age despite sounding so young and being so small. And she had been _aware_ all of that time! How lonely must have she gotten in all those years she'd waited for him? It made Tony nearly choke on guilt and he held her tighter. She seemed to appreciate that, though, snuggling even closer, as though she wanted to climb into his chest, nestle next to his heart and hide there forever._

_Elsa hummed, voice becoming both breathy like the wind and rough like a growl, a volcano waiting to erupt. Word in a language he should never understand flowed from her like sharp English or elegant Italian and he could decipher, knew every word of the explanation. Even if he didn't need it put in a human language, the dragon did so, anyway. "The heart of my fire, the fire of my soul, Ib is a word we dragons use to describe the one with whom our souls are connected, the ones destined for us and whom we are destined for. You are my kin, Anthony Edward Stark. You have named me and you will summon me. Then, our connection will be complete and we will be established soulmates."_

_"Okay, so soulmates are an actual thing," the engineer muttered to himself, trying not to become overcome with this information. That was too much magic for someone like him. "Good to know. One more thing to lose sleep about, figuring out everyone else's soulmates so I can play ultimate matchmaker."_

_Elsa snorted, her warm breath washing over his neck. "Only dragons have a soulmate. At least a natural one chosen by the fates themselves, by the multiverse and the stars. Other species create similar bonds through magic shared and lifeforces intertwined. Those still cannot measure to the bond we will share once I hatch. I am waiting for you, my Ib."_

_Tony tried not to think about that last part. It was somewhere between weird and disturbing, really. "Okay, but what about a mate? Surely _they_ are equally if not _more_ important?"_

_Elsa let out an amused chortle at that. "Are you trying to get rid of me, my Ib?" The question was asked in a joking manner but Tony could detect some underlined genuine uncertainty and fear in it, which made him want to beat himself up for scaring the young dragon._

_"I'm just curious. Trying to get a feel of our situation, you know?"_

_The little one remained quiet for a moment before she just burrowed deeper into his chest, if that was even possible, and demanded more cuddles. "No, mates are not as important. While dragons _can_ mate for life and even form soulbonds with another of its kind, no bond is stronger than our summoner's. _You_ are the most important thing to me in the entirety of _existence_, Anthony Edward Stark. My soul is you."_

_"Did you mean 'yours'?" He asked, a bit flummoxed by the wording, but he felt his companion shake her head against him._

_"No, _you_. A dragon cannot _be_ without their Ib and you are mine. As such, a dragon cannot _live_, cannot be _born_, cannot _survive_ without their Ib. Had you died at any point, I would, too."_

'And given how likely it is that she's the last of her kind and that her death may very well lead to the destruction of _everything_, that's not a burden I wanted to carry. Not with _my_ lifestyle,'_ Tony couldn't help but muse to himself with a sigh. "So I'm practically the mystical love of your life. That's nice. Is that why you healed my arm and side?"_

_"Yes," Elsa responded immediately and with not an ounce of remorse. "They pained you and I did not like that. You didn't deserve that pain."_

_"My friends had went to great lengths just to ensure that I _survive_. After everything, the pan was almost reassuring. It was proof I was still alive after all of that shit. It was a reminder of what I nearly lost for not being good enough."_

_"It was a reminder that you were alone and you carried a burned no single being should," the young dragon reprimanded him with a wisdom no baby should have, not even a dragon one, at least not in Tony's mind. Wisdom usually comes from suffering. He'd rather she be as innocent as a human babe than face a reality where her wait for him had brought suffering on an unhatched being. "As you are no longer alone, no matter where we might be or how far apart, I deemed it obstinate and as such have removed it. Besides, I could not let my Ib suffer for no good reason. You blame yourself even when the blame is not yours to bear. Most certainly not _alone_. Have you not tried to prepare? Have _you_ not prepared even while those around you ridiculed you?"_

_"I thought you woke up only a year ago?" He half asked, half accused, if for no other reason than to ensure she stopped talking about things he feared will soon return to haunt him as proper nightmares once she is hatched and they stop meeting in this frozen darkness._

_The ball of light snorted again. "How little you know, my Ib. Yes, I have been awake for only a year but that does not, however, mean that we are not still connected. We have been connected since the day _you_ were born, Anthony Edward Stark. I received snippets of your life as my dreams while I waited for the day when we can first speak. I know a few things about you and as soon as I hatch, there will be little I do not know about you."_

_"That ... sounds a bit creepy."_

_"I will know your very _soul_, my Ib. That is our bond." Tony figured he'd have to accept that. He'd usually hate having anyone in his head but he had a feeling Elsa will be nothing if not a reassuring presence. He couldn't help but wonder if Maximoff would be able to get into his head again once he and Elsa get that proper connection she seemed so excited about. "Of course not," the dragon in question replied, sounding offended, and the inventor wondered if he had accidentally spoken out loud that last part. "You are _mine_. I would protect you from all who would wish you harm, no matter its form."_

_"Thanks," he couldn't help but sigh in relief, rewarding his soon to be waking-world companion with cuddles since she seemed to like them so much. "You have no idea how much that means to me. Or, well, maybe you do." And maybe it won't be so bad to have someone else in his head if it was someone as sweet as Elsa._

_She purred in happiness and the sound actually made him grin. It was cute. "My pleasure, my Ib."_

_"You know, you should call me Tony, seriously. I realize the meaning of the word is important in, like, millions of ways but you sound almost formal when you say it. And what should I call you? You must have a name and while I like teasingly calling you Elsa, it's only fair that I know your real name, too." __The dragon stopped purring and rubbing against his chest, falling still and utterly quiet. Tony frowned, worried, and once again cursed the light shinning from his companion which prevented him from actually seeing her. He couldn't tell what her mood was right now. "Hey, you okay? Did I step over a boundary I shouldn't have? Did I do something wrong?"_

_" ... I _like_ Elsa. _You_ gave me that name," came the reply after a long moment of silence where only their breathing could be heard in this strange void she resided in. The Well of Ahtohallan, she had called it._

_"Yeah, but it's not your real name, right?"_

_"Tony, _you_ give me my name. A dragon's Ib is _always_ the one to name them. It is their _true_ name, their _destined_ calling. And you called me Elsa. And I like it." Tony froze. He ... He had called her that in jest and yet that was now her name for the rest of time. Named after a silly Disney princess - well, queen and now practically _goddess_ as the fifth spirit of nature, if they were being accurate - character._

_"I ... I'm sorry. I didn't realize-"_

_"You don't _have_ to be sorry. I _like _it." Elsa even did something that must have been a shrug. How very interesting._

_"Well, I think it suits you either way," Tony said with a shrug of his own. Hey, it was her name. If she liked it, he wasn't going to fight it. He was just glad he hadn't screwed something up without even knowing it. __He could practically _feel_ her beaming up at him and couldn't help but laugh when something wet, warm and rough licked the side of his face. "Okay, okay, that's enough excitement for one night." Only he would rather not _this_ end only for it to be potentially replaced with a nightmare. Be it falling through the Well again or one of his previous numbers. Heavens, _please_ don't let it be _anything_ even _remotely_ Thanos related!_

_"Yes, you probably should rest for the night. We shall see each other soon enough," Elsa said with what felt like a nod and Tony nervously agreed. The mythological creature, of course, caught on immediately. "You hesitate. You are _afraid_. Why?"_

_Tony figured there was no point in lying. "I used to suffer from _serious_ nightmares before you started pulling me into ... whatever this is. I guess I'm just not eager to have that part of my life back, even if it would be the normalest thing to happen to me in the past year."_

_Elsa fell silent again, contemplating what he had just told her and Tony just allowed himself a moment to hold on to her for his own reassurance. He'd never have imagined that a _dragon _of all things would one day become a source of comfort for someone like _Tony Stark_. Like, seriously. _'Life just has a way of screwing with me, I swear.'

_"Then how about I sing you to slumber? That way, I can monitor your dreams and stir you clear of any night terrors." That suggestion made Tony pause, considering it. _'I mean, it's not like she doesn't _already _have a way to enter my dreams and she's pretty damn adamant that she'll protect me. And I _don't _want the nightmares to start now after a whole year of relatively peaceful sleep.'_ "You need proper _rest_, Tony. Tomorrow will be a tough day for the both of us."_

_Seeing as she sounded so _earnest _and he can practically _feel _it in the air, Tony nodded. "Let's give it a shot, shall we?"_

_Elsa cheered and then flew out of his hands - he felt something like wings brush against his skin and he automatically knew she wasn't that Chinese-like type of dragon with no flying appendages, which will make him more comfortable when she starts _flying _because it will have more _logic _to it than saying _magic _just lets her fly - circled him once, twice as he laughed at her antics before she pushed him to the ground as gently as she could. Tony complied, wondering if she'll be like this in the real world, too, but was soon distracted by the fact that the light _grew _and he soon found himself practically swaddled up in a far bigger dragon than he was used to. _'Must be the dream world's doing or something.'

"Where the north wind

Meets the sea

There's a river

Full of memories

Sleep my darling

Safe and sound

For in this river all is found."

_And Tony also couldn't help but relax as his companion kept singing. Elsa really had a voice fit for voicing a princess in a Disney movie. And she was just the perfect temperature, too, not too warm but definitely warmer than their surroundings. He could already feel himself slipping into true sleep, one without dreams or half-awareness or whatever it is he's been experiencing for the past several months._

"In her waters

Deep and true

Lie the answers

And a path for you

Dive down deep into her sound

But not too deep or you will drown"

_'_That doesn't sound ominous at all,'_ he thought to himself sarcastically. If he could be bothered to keep his eyes open, he might have even rolled them. _'Why must all lullabies have such foreboding in them? And why do I keep getting a sense of deja vu?!' _That last one actually unnerved him but he was getting used to that particular feeling. He had a feeling he might have to keep getting used to it. He was, after all, about to hatch a dragon from its egg any day now. His life was so weird._

"Yes, she sings to those who can hear

And in her song, all magic flows

But can you brave what you most fear?

Can you face what the river knows?"

'I actually have a bad feeling about this.' _Lullabies really had no place being this ominous. What if one of them traumatizes some poor kid for life?! _Tony _was feeling a bit traumatized and he's an _adult_! _'I should seriously talk with someone about that. Gotta stop that trend. Kids are sharper with each new generation.'_ Those were some of his last thoughts before he let himself drift off with a yawn to Elsa's beautiful voicing singing the hauntingly good song._

"Where the north wind

Meets the sea

There's a mother

Full of memories

Come, my darling

Homeward bound

When all is lost

And all is found."

00000

The Avengers sort of jerked awake at dawn when a weird noise started coming from outside the little cottage that the Sami had given them last night, all of them disoriented and looking like they hadn't gotten enough rest. Tony, on the other hand, felt perfectly rested, which was probably the weirdest turn of events anyone had seen so far. Anyway, he was the best rested and so he was the one who was most awake, which was why he was the first one who recognized the noise as some sort of tribal music involving stomping of feet and sticks/spears on the ground, hands clapping and singing, once again, a melody vaguely familiar to him. He swears the whole ordeal was a sort of deja vu he wasn't sure he wanted to question - at least not just yet - but never the less, his curiosity has been peeked.

"What's going on?" Strange, who probably fell back on his ER training to immediately snap to attention, asked, his robes appearing on him with a single hand gesture. He was still seated on the couch he'd slept in but his eyes were sharp and aware. That didn't stop a yawn from breaking through, which was actually kind of cute, a word Tony would never usually associate with the man.

"Who the _fuck_ is awake enough to _sing_ this early in the morning?" Barton, after stealing a glance outside and saw that it was still before dawn, complained, burying his head under a pillow, which only made him groan in discomfort as his head was now separated from the cold, hard wood only by his sleeping bag. Serves him right for being an idiot.

Tony just shrugged, tugging on a jacket as he headed towards the door to investigate. "Could be some cultural thing, a way to greet the new day." Which was interesting enough on its own but Tony was more intrigued by why and how the melody was so familiar to him. He was intent on walking out and outright asking what they were singing, but as soon as he opened the entrance door and the full volume hit him, he realized a few things he hadn't noticed before.

One, when the cold air hit him, he wasn't bothered by it, as though it were a pleasant summer breeze.

Two, the Sami weren't just _singing_, they seemed to be weaving a new kind of magic he'd never seen before through the simple, repetitive 'Na na na hey na na na hey na na' and the beat they made with their feet, hands or spears/sticks.

Three, Elsa was humming along in the back of his head, sounding even _more_ excited than yesterday, which he'd thought to be impossible enough.

And _four_, perhaps the most important part, was that the Northuldra, as they had called their group, were all standing in a vaguely circular pattern, one hand on each side of them as they held spears between them that they hit the ground with together, all of them smiling hopefully and almost as if in awe as they looked at _him_ and all of that pent up magic immediately surged towards him when he appeared, like a whiff of air, smelling of all four seasons at once, of fire and wet earth and ozone and that peculiar scent that perminated the air when the snow covers the world in white.

And then he saw that each of them had some rather familiar designs etched into their much more formal looking, colorful tunics and dresses and he felt like there was _no way_ this was his life.

And then, as if to screw with him some more, as the song reached a sort of culmination, they all _bowed_. To _him_. The Avengers might think its to all of them, as they had all come to stand behind or next to Tony, but they didn't know what _he_ did, what he _was_. _'And fuck my life.'_

"We wish you welcome," Aidna, now wearing a crown of white flowers that _couldn't_ be blossoming here and now unless aided by magic, said as her head finally lifted, dark eyes locking onto Tony's own honey brown ones. Her entire community echoed her words, their heads still bowed despite some youngsters trying to steal a peek at him.

"Tony? Your hand ... ?" He heard Rogers say behind him and Tony cursed as he realized he'd forgotten to put his hand in gloves or a pocket so no one would see the smooth, scar-free skin he now sported. "Language," Rogers, predictably, said and then winced when Tony shot him an angry and annoyed glare.

"Fuck you," he ended up telling him, absolutely _done_ with all of this bullshit.

"Is this some kind of rite to welcome heroes or something?" He heard Maximoff ask of the closest Sami and the young boy eagerly nodded, excited eyes straying to Stark before he shyly looked down again.

_'And fuck my life, too.'_

Elsa only giggled.


	6. Chapter 6

**Show Yourself Into The Unknown**

**Summary: The one where Thanos is dead, Tony has weird dreams instead of nightmares, the Avengers watch dubious Disney movies and mystical creatures are more than real. Oh, and the Cloak totally ships it.**

"So," Tony asked as he stirred his vegetable and rabbit stew, voice low and facing forward even as his eyes stayed on Aidna. "The Northuldra, huh? You _do_ realize Disney has a group of fictional people in one of its latest movies called that, right? You could sue."

"We are aware," the woman replied with obvious amusement, stealing her own glances at him much like the rest of her people. Though the more appropriate term might be staring at this point since they looked his way every five seconds or so. Usually, he would be either unnerved or annoyed or maybe even both, but he knew what they must have recognized or figured out or whatever. They knew who and what he was and what or whom visited his dreams. "Disney has never kept it hidden that they have asked the Sami Council to counsel for Frozen 2. We just asked to be the people that teaches them whatever it is they wanted to know to make their movie as accurate and as relatable as they could."

"But why?" He couldn't help but ask, confused. Why would these people, who were actively reclusive from the rest of society so they could guard a long thought lost dragon egg for the right person - for him - to come to hatch it, all but reach out to Disney just to volunteer to spend hours on end with their representatives and script writers, talking about their culture?

"Because dragons are peculiar beings," she began cryptically, chuckling at his disgusted face at the thought of a roundabout answer. "Relax, Mr Stark. I only jest. But it does, indeed, have a lot to do with the unborn dragon. And its mother." Tony sat up straighter, his curiosity peeked and attention fully focused on the woman. He could feel Elsa was rather attentive as well instead of humming along the song the Sami had greeted him with earlier. "There are different kinds of dragons with different powers. We can never predict what powers a dragon will have, not even their hatchers. Nevertheless, the little one's mother had some power of foresight and she saw and she told us - or rather, our ancestors - that her young will come to the world only after half of it dies and is reborn again. We have thought several occasions were the triggers but it is not until this year that we realized the hatcher has been born years earlier and that they must be back, if they had been dusted, as the egg started affecting our magical forest. We'd known this will happen sooner or later and we had been thinking of ways to draw the hatcher's attention to our region, but when Disney offered, it was a stroke of luck and convenience. The names are slightly different and the mythology is all botched up legends of old other Sami groups tell, but all the important ones have been dropped and they stuck in your head. It created a connection for you and your dragon."

"Yeah, she really likes the Frozen saga or whatever you wanna call it." He could practically _feel_ Elsa pouting at his remark but she doesn't even try refuting it. Likely because she realizes that would be an outright lie. "So all of this was meant to happen? Why only now?"

"I imagine it had much to do with the Snap. Imagine if there _are_ more dragons somewhere out there, even if it was just _one_ more. Either your dragon or that one would be snapped out of existence, halving their population, but they are the ones _keeping the true balance intact_. No matter how many dragons exist, halving their presence in reality so suddenly would all but destroy the multiverse. As it is, a dragon before it hatches is immune to the rest of the world. If there _are_ more dragons and they get halved, the eggs won't count."

"Meaning there will be at least _one_ dragon more than that half to maintain the balance. Clever."

"When their very existence is the condition for the continued existence of everything else, they had to be. Dragons are unlike anything else you have or will ever come across, Anthony Stark. Remember that," and with that, she was called over by one of her people to the side and Tony found her seat soon enough taken by Strange. When he looked up from where he had been staring at his food, he was immediately grateful, as he saw Rogers looking ready to come take it himself had Stephen not been fast enough. "Thanks," he whispered to the man with a small smile which only widened when Stephen returned it.

"What? The food not good enough for you, Stark?" Barton commented from a little ways behind him as he passed and Tony rolled his eyes. He'd never been picky about his food and that was especially true ever since Afghanistan. He wouldn't have been alive if it were otherwise. Still, he ignored Hawkeye and continued contemplating the new information he got every day regarding his soon to be companion. Clint must not have cared for his reaction or just got bored because he left without saying anything, leaving the two Awesome Facial Hair Bros - no, Tony didn't care how much Stephen protested the idea, it was staying - alone once again.

"You could have told me about the arm, you know," the Sorcerer Supreme said mildly after a minute or two of just watching the proceedings around them. Their hots didn't have a community hall or cafeteria or a dinning hall or whatever, they were used to the cold so they just ate outside, maybe putting up a few magical barriers to keep most of the harsher winds out, so the Avengers found themselves sitting on various logs and the rare few chairs people bothered to bring out, trying to keep themselves warm through their breakfast or their hot beverages. Tony couldn't help but wonder why _he _didn't need either and was as comfortable in the weather as though he were in Malibu. "I wouldn't have told anyone if you wanted it kept secret."

"I kind of didn't tell anyone precisely for the reason that everyone is staring at me right now," he grumbled around his spoonful of stew. It was really good. He wondered whether it would be too much to ask for more. "I didn't even want to tell Rhodey but he saw for himself before I even realized- it worked." He rushed out the last part so as not to appear suspicious about _not knowing how his arm healed_. He didn't want to bring up what he _is_ until he has Elsa by his side, safe and sound. "I kind of didn't have a choice with that. Or with the lot of you finding out. I like to think I would have told you next had this whole mess not started. I know you at least wouldn't judge me."

The Sorcerer Supreme hummed quietly under his breath. "Rogers wants you to use whatever healed your arm on Barnes. He seems to be under the impression that whatever it is you used can apparently regrow limbs - which should be, mind you, impossible and would be a medical miracle if it _were_ \- or reduce Gama radiation in Dr Banner until he could be healed from his ... condition. Or my hands." Tony cursed the supersoldier with all of his might. Everyone knew Strange was very touchy about his hands. "He thinks you're keeping some sort of miraculous cure-all all to yourself and that I will be able to convince you to 'share your miracle with the world.' As though you wouldn't fix Colonel Rhodes' legs first if you did," the man scuffed and Tony ran a hand through his hair.

"That asshole," he grumbled under his breath. "He's talking about Extremis. I mentioned it once back in 2012 or 2013, while the Avengers were still pretending to be a good, healthy team. It's a sort of serum that rewrites the way the brain heals the body - you understand, at least, that _everything_ comes from the brain and not just conscious actions, be they mental or physical - and it can indeed help you regrow limbs or heal from deadly or permanent injuries. I used a much weaker solution version of it to survive my removal of the Arc Reactor surgery but that amount is simply not enough to do anything other than keep someone alive for something that intrusive or dangerous. The problem with it that Rogers doesn't understand or refuses to get through his thick skull is that the serum is volatilely unstable, to the point that fire burns through your veins and you could _explode_."

"Ouch."

"Yeah," he sighed, looking at his friend with a bittersweet smile. "I'm sorry if that got your hopes up, Stephen."

"It's fine," the sorcerer waved him off. "There are ways with magic to heal my hands if that were ever a thing I wanted to venture into. I just realized long ago that that was not a price I would ever pay." Tony made a confused noise, to which the other gave him a wane smile. "Magic has a price. Always. The bill comes due eventually, _inevitably_. If I were to heal my hands with magic, I would lose something. Most likely the ability to do magic, as any other who had chosen to heal themselves instead of pursuing the Mystic Arts further have. I figured I will save more lives this way than with a scalpel once again in my hand."

"Oh," was all Tony could say and he looked away, thinking. He couldn't help but dread that Elsa might be paying a price for healing his arm. And just how harsh that price might be.

"Yeah, but it's no big deal, really. I've learned to live with it. The pain is the worst during rainy or cold days." And that just made Tony guiltily wonder if Elsa could do anything about _that_ without facing any serious consequences. Stephen used to be a surgeon. He must have always taken great care of his hands therefore he never did anything with them that could cause damage. Despite no doubt getting used to it, the pain must still be unbearable. Tony could only guess based on his own experience with the pain caused by his Arc Reactor. Even now, it sometimes hurt as though it were still lodged in his chest, a phantom pain that will never go away. And that was even without mentioning the accursed shield-shaped scar throbbing in pain every time a cold breeze hit him or when he saw snow. How he wasn't freaking out or suffering through some _serious_ pain right now was a downright miracle he was tempted to attribute to Elsa. Seriously, anything miracle-worthy was definitely a byproduct of her existing at all, Tony was sure if it. "But never mind that. I've been meaning to talk to you since last night. How are you feeling?"

The genius, of course, knew what Stephen was referring to and was both touched and annoyed at the doctor for bringing it up. Stephen knew what this should be doing to him but Tony found himself too focused on Elsa to worry about anything else, least of all himself. "I'm doing surprisingly well, all things considered. Then again, I always did work best under enough pressure to break Vibranium."

Despite his best efforts not to, the taller man snorted, amused. "Figures only you can survive that amount of force." They grinned at each other before the sorcerer looked pointedly at Tony's still mostly full plate and the genius rolled his eyes.

"Mother hen."

"A long day awaits us and I figured you'd have the toughest time of it of us all."

Tony did his best not to react beyond arching an eyebrow at the sorcerer. "Oh?" Because there was _no way_ Strange could have figured out _Tony_ was the one meant to hatch the dragon, right?

Stephen glared in the direction of Rogers and his little group. Tony took notice of how both of the supersoldiers seemed to be rather affected by _this_ much cold despite the serum running through their bodies. "Only a fool would believe Rogers would leave the matter well alone regarding your miraculously healed arm. Something tells me he will be more annoying than usual."

"And to think," Tony drawled in a tone both resigned and mocking. "We thought that to be impossible."

Both men with awesome facial hair snorted with Elsa's echoing in Tony's mind as well. _"Indeed_."

00000

Trekking through the snow was a difficult enough pastime but having to avoid Rogers as well while doing it was a nightmare Tony would rather not be a part of. Not when the pull of his heart - his very _soul_ \- was distracting him enough that he sometimes made missteps and nearly stumbled or indeed tumbled into the snow. Despite his best efforts, to mostly stay between Carol and Rhodey or Stephen and Wong, Rogers somehow managed to catch him on his own and was pestering him about 'not being so selfish' as to keep his 'treatment' from the 'rest of the world' that might need his technology to recover from grievous wounds. As though they were complete strangers who'd only now met and they both didn't know he was talking about Barnes in particular.

Well, even if it _was_ some form of technology Tony had developed, he sure as hell wouldn't be _obliged_, as Rogers was implicating, to help his parents' murderer and the supersoldier really ought to remember that. Not to mention the man was once again exercising his special brand of hypocrisy. He sure as hell didn't have anything against _Wakanda_ keeping all of their special treatments to themselves even though they were now -open to the world', saying something along the lines about how _of course_ they were going to keep their secrets to themselves, it's _their_ technology, Tony, they don't owe it to anyone, it's their choice to make, why are you being so petty about this? Really, the man should be given a medal for his delusions. It would be fascinating if it wasn't so outright _terrifying_ that someone like Rogers was considered a legally capable adult.

_'Maybe I can stay with Elsa at the bottom of this Well of Ahtohallan?'_ He wondered to himself, finding that he was _very tempted_ by the idea. It would at least keep him away from Rogers and his bullshit. If he could bring all of his important people along, they'd all be fine.

"How much longer?" Loki asked as he, out of the blue, started walking next to Tony on his other side, shooting the good Captain an all too friendly smile as they passed close to one of the extremely snow-laden trees. Rogers only had enough time to frown suspiciously at the black haired Asgardian before he yelped and was buried in half the snow from the tree, Loki only dragging Tony a bit away so as not to be caught in the mini avalanche.

Tony watched in amusement as the former rouges and Thor immediately came to the aid of their 'shield brother', answering without much thought. "Not all that much further now, I think." The pull and pulse of the strange bond he shared with Elsa was more intense now, suggesting as much.

"How can you tell?" Bruce asked even as the rest of them continued walking ignoring how Carol blasted a photon blast to melt the snow and proceeded to scold the Avengers for messing around. Instead they followed after the five Northuldra warriors that were to take up the new shift from their colleagues at the Temple and that were acting as their guides at the moment.

Tony was _very glad_ that his suit was covering him from head to toe and thus hiding his reactions because he felt his whole body twitch as he realized he had answered a question he should rightfully not be able to. And he was also immensely grateful fir FRIDAY and his own genius as an alert lit up his screen. "Uh, because my suit is sensing vast amounts of unidentified energy coming from not far up ahead?" He nearly tripped over his own feet when something started to be visible through the still dense tree-line. "Not to mention that there is a big-ass stone building right in front of us."

"I guess you still have better sensors in your suit than me," Rhodes could be heard grumbling but Tony paid him no heed, finding himself half-stunned to be standing in front of the building he had seen in his own dreams so many times. It looked exactly the same, only now he could see it clearly and marvel at the fact that a glacier had settled all around it, hiding it from easy sight. The sun reflecting off of the ice nearly blinded them but in places where it did not reach, it acted like a mirror. Slightly distorted, but still perfectly reflective. "Okay, wow. This place would be perfect for a selfie."

Tony outright laughed at the words barely breathed out past his best friend's lips. Not that he didn't _agree_, per se. At the entrance alone you could get all the angles in a single picture.

"Welcome to the Temple of Ahtohallan," Aidna said and Tony knew the words were probably mostly meant for himself and possible all three of their sorcerer friend rather than everyone else. "The resting place of what is possibly the last dragon egg, the last dragon. I do hope you will be _respectful_." That one, though, was literally meant for everyone else but Tony, judging from the looks the Sami sent his companions. "Do not _touch_ anything, do not wander off and do not come close to the Well of Ahtohallan. Its frigid temperatures will not be survivable to any who do not possess a dragon's heat coursing through their soul. Only the hatcher may enter."

"Then why bother guarding this place?" Barnes asked curiously, eyeing the entrance with ten Northuldra soldiers watching them approach with vigilance, faintly glowing spears tightly held in a hand and at the ready for a possible confrontation. "I mean no offense, but isn't it a bit pointless to guard this place if only one person can reach the egg?"

"And what is to stop the undead from retrieving the egg? Necromancers are a nasty sort and vampires are not to be underestimated. A shade could easily enter the Well and destroy the egg. None of them could last long enough to take it out, as the egg is heavily protected by defensive _dragon_ wards, but anything even remotely fast enough to reach it for just one second could destroy it and there is too big of a risk that this might indeed be the _last _dragon in existence to gamble like so." The young man that had accompanied Aidna last night as well, a promising Northuldra warrior by the name Migil, said with a sneer. He was one of the few that was not so eager to accept that an outsider has been the one chosen by destiny and even less so that even _more_ outsiders will be going into their most sacred of places without earning it while he had struggled to do so by serving as its protector for a better part of his life. Aidna had told Tony he was quite possibly their best but he was not suited to be any sort of leader. At least not until he proves himself capable of putting aside his pride. Tony hoped the young man could do so, as well as his anger, for he had quite some potential and it was clear he cared about his people. Arrogance and pride were indeed not things he ought to weight himself down with.

"Is that why the entire place if frozen over?" Hope asked, even as they all stared at the imposing structure of man and nature's creation with awe as they came closer, but her voice sounded wary as well. "Will the ice caps melt if the dragon leaves this place and all of these protections fall?"

"The dragon only has influence in this area," Aidna answered, even as she motioned for them to walk faster. "It is the most natural creature in the entirety of existence. Unless it wants to, it won't disturb nature itself. Now come, quickly. Something does not feel right."

_"Tony?"_ Elsa's voice sounded small and worried, almost scared or maybe even panicked. It made Tony go stiff as a rod and immediately put him on edge and battle ready. Elsa had never sounded anything but overjoyed to be conversing with him, no matter the topic. _"I think someone's breaking into the temple."_

_'What?'_

"There's someone here," Stephen said almost at the same time, mandala shields springing up and he shared a look with Aidna that had the woman gritting her teeth with the implications but nodding back nonetheless, especially when she cast a glance in Tony's direction.

"We must hurry to the Well, then. No intruder is to make it to the innermost sanctuary!" She ordered her people even as she started marching inside, the rest of them but two guards quick to follow. Tony faltered when a spike of panic surged from Elsa's side but it was already too late.

Tony was only aware of Nebula tackling him to the ground before the world shook with an explosion.


	7. Chapter 7

**Show Yourself Into The Unknown**

**Summary: The one where Thanos is dead, Tony has weird dreams instead of nightmares, the Avengers watch dubious Disney movies and mystical creatures are more than real. Oh, and the Cloak totally ships it.**

When the rumbling finally stopped and what little dust there was to settle did, Tony finally turned around to observe his surroundings, letting Nebula carefully haul him to his feet and further away from the now very much blocked entrance as he took stock of the situation. Almost everyone had made it through, though Tony noted a couple of his fellow Avengers were - hopefully - stuck on the other side. He knew Valkyrie will be perfectly capable of looking after Bruce and Lang and they might even be able to dig through the ice to join them later, but they were kind of in a hurry, here. For reasons unknown, Tony now felt a connection with the temple and, somehow, he was aware that the eastern outermost wall had been breached by what could be described as hostile intruders. It set him on edge that he was so far away from Elsa, who was further north, the Well perhaps in the center but Elsa was practically at the north wall. How Tony knew any of this is a mystery that will have to wait to be solved another time.

"Are you okay?" He asked Nebula, who only snapped her sprained wrist back into place, the mechanics of her hand easily rearranging themselves until everything was back in order. The blue assassin gave him a look and he raised both hands in surrender. "Hey, you're my friend and you know I _always_ worry about my friends."

"The suit, off," she all but commanded and Tony let out an exasperated sigh but did as told, knowing she was only doing this out of concern for his well being. After the death of her sister and their near disastrous journey through space, Nebula had latched onto Tony in much the same way Harley and Peter had done over the years since he'd met them. Tony was always more than glad to accept beautifully broken, intelligent people into his ragtag family and the more sane members of it - Pepper, Rhodey, Happy and even May, now - were always happy to see him, well, _happy_ so they accepted anyone new with grace. _After_ they interrogated them for their intentions towards Tony, of course. After the Avengers fallout, they were no longer willing to risk it, not even with superheroes. Nebula was one of their favorites so far. Mostly because she was willing to mother hen him as much as they were and he didn't dare say no to her since he knew she won't hesitate to indeed knock him out or drag him around - gently - kicking and screaming until he takes better care of himself. Only Stephen was as effective as her, given he just had his magical Cloak wrap Tony up and levitate him places as the doctor orders. Speaking of an unfair advantage, seriously.

"Everyone else okay?" He called out in the dimness of the corridor and tried not to think of this place as a cave. It was easier than he thought it would be, though that could be due to the smooth walls and the pretty lights coming through the shattered ice boulders blocking the entrance. As he looked around, he took in his teammates as they slowly got themselves back to their feet. Wong had a nasty gash on his forehead but the Cloak seems to have protected Strange fine. Carol was hauling Rhodey up, War Machine suit and all, without a scratch on her and a quick check in with FRIDAY informed him that Rhodes would perhaps only have some light bruising. Barnes had a small cut on his cheek and his metal arm was scratched. Rogers was helping Sam up even as Wanda took down the bubble of red energy that had protected her while Vision carefully let go of Natasha and Clint. Hope seemed a bit disoriented but it didn't look too serious. Loki let down whatever shield had protected him and Aidna and Migil even as Thor dragged his leg out from under the icy rubble. Tony really wondered sometimes at the Asgardian anatomy because that would have crushed anyone else's leg beyond ruin.

"It would seem we are. The Temple, however, may not be in as good of a condition," Wong answered with a grave tone as he dusted himself off. "The energy signature behind that attack ... It was familiar."

Stephen looked grim as he ground out through clenched teeth. "Mordo."

"The guy that wants the egg? I thought you said he wouldn't do anything to harm it and this seems pretty harmful to me," Barton said a bit sarcastically, shooting the two sorcerers a look. "There's no way he could have known whether that attack could have avoided doing some serious damage to the egg."

"The Ancient One had used to relatively frequently visit the egg for the sake of ensuring it was safe and the protections left by dragons was still in place," Aidna said, getting to her feet with Loki's help, nodding in thanks to the Frost Giant. "I remember still being a little girl the first time I saw her. The last time, seven years ago, she had two students come with her. An older man with graying hair and grief in his eyes and a young former soldier with his demons still nipping at his heels."

"Kaecilius and Mordo," Wong said with dawning realization. "The Ancient One took them to the north years ago to show them 'what we protect'. I remember Master Hamir had wondered at the wisdom of such actions."

"Neither of the men ever returned," Aidna reassured. "Kaecilius may have wanted to hand us all over to the demon Dormammu but he did not wish to destroy us all, including himself. But if it is indeed Mordo, then we must move swiftly. The Ancient One made throughout inspections of the temple. Mordo would know his way around vaguely but well enough to reach the Well fast enough."

"Then we move out," Rogers said and Tony rolled his eyes even as he completely agreed with Carol's glare. It wasn't Rogers' place to order anyone around, as he was not the leader of the Avengers anymore, but Tony didn't have the time to ponder that much when Aidna's eyes met his own.

"It will have to happen in a rush. Time is of the essence and the dragon's safety is at stake." The message was clear and Tony nodded.

"Then let's head out." The two Northuldra warrior wizards nodded and followed after him immediately as he started marching down the dark halls. The Avengers fell into step quickly enough and they all grimaced as the further they got in, the darker it got and soon it was nearly impossible to see. Tony and Rhodey activated their headlights, so to call them, and Widow's and Wasp's wrist mounted lights worked as well as the space flashlight thingy Nebula got out, but when Carol tried to light up her fist with her powers, Thor tried to course electricity through Stormbreaker and Stephen, Wong and Loki tried to create magical lights to light the way, nothing happened.

"What in Odin's beard?" Thor could be heard asking and the Avengers all turned to stare, flabbergasted, as every next attempt to do the same failed.

"It's the protections the dragons left behind," Migil replied, sounding bored and like it should have been obvious. "The egg is vulnerable no matter how well it is hidden or protected by the wards. So the dragons took it one step further and ensured magic cannot be used within the temple unless great amounts of power and effort were being put in any spell or feat of magic. Not only that but most of you will find that your enhancements are neutralized in this place."

Maximoff was quick to test out this theory and Tony watched in a sort of revealed fascination as no red mist of energy appeared between her hands, no matter how many times she attempted it. It wasn't until she nearly collapsed with the effort that she finally managed to create some sparks of energy between her fingers. Thor and Carol were smart enough not to attempt anything. Loki released his glamour and seemed to straighten up without the drain it must have been having on him without him even realizing it. Rogers, though, did the typical stupid thing Rogers would do - he punched a wall and cried out when a bone cracked somewhere. Barnes was immediately next to him, berating him for his stupidity in doing something so idiotic. Migil just sniffed in disdain.

"I _told_ you."

"So they're essentially useless?" Barton asked even as he watched in curiosity as Vision couldn't phase through the walls like he should usually be able to do perfectly fine. Tony shuddered to think at the power an adult dragon holds if such protections were still all these years after they were out up and the one who had done it was probably dead by now, too. An _Infinity Stone_ was _right there_ and the usual faint glow radiating from the thing was barely present. Stephen was looking down at his fancy necklace in worry.

"We can still fight."

"Yes," Migil replied mercilessly at the same time Rogers tried to protest. "The Masters of the Mystic Arts, however," he shrugged even as Aidna handed over one of her knives to each of them. Tony realized after a quick scan by FRIDAY that the blades of those things were wicked sharp _ice_ radiating the same energy signature as the temple.

"These should allow you to use shields and some Eldritch magic," Aidna told the two, handing over a third one to Loki, who far towered over her with the loss of his Asgardian disguise. Tony didn't miss the fear the former rouges were showing as they gazed upon the blue skin, the small horns and the completely red eyes. "But they are limited. Be careful how you use them."

"Are those made of the glacier's ice?" Tony couldn't help but ask and Aidna nodded.

"We can speak of this later," she insisted, taking out a few jars full of some glowing balls that Tony realized were actually those glowing bugs that flew around the Compound some summer nights. Aidna handed them out as did Migil until everyone had at least some sort of light source in their possession. Then, she marched right on into the darkness ahead of them and Tony grimaced as he recognized the similarities to his own dreams. Well, at least he now knew they were more visions than dreams, though he wondered how he got them either way.

"What are our chances of getting to the main chamber before Mordo?" Strange asked as he fell in step with Aidna and Stark, frowning ahead and patting the barely moving Cloak of Levitation in reassurance. Tony couldn't help but take one of the thing's folds in his own hand and hold it like he was holding a child's hand. That at least seemed to please and settle it a little and Stephen shot him a grateful look. It was no secret to those who really knew the man just how precious his magical companion was to him.

"For all that this is the only and most direct path to the Well, it is usually laden with traps and guards, usually to fool anyone else to go down one of the wrong corridors."

"You said 'usually'?" Romanov jumped in before the woman could really get explaining and Aidna glared at the Black Widow, unimpressed and a bit annoyed by the woman.

"Yes, _usually_. Now, however, our path is clear so we should make short time of this journey. I am unsure, however, of the status along the other corridors."

"Why only 'now'?"

Both Migil and Aidna looked ready to kill the redhead at this point. They clearly didn't appreciate her interrogating them. "Because the dragon has awoken and is waiting for the hatcher. And considering it will die should anything happen to its hatcher, the traps automatically deactivated for their well being. There is a good reason we have upped the number of guards. The usual defenses are at a minimum."

"So you're telling us anyone can just waltz in and take the egg if anything were to happen to you?" Wilson asked incredulously and Migil glared death at him.

"No, it means anyone can get to the Well of Ahtohallan undisturbed but to enter the Well for the dragon egg is still suicide unless your soul burns with dragon fire at its core. Not even your Frost Giant friend, who is made to live in unbearable code, or your robotic companions or even the thunder god or the Captain with powers of an Infinity Stone, can bear up to the cold."

"So another dragon summoner or hatcher or whatever you call it would be able to get the egg?" Loki asked, sounding a bit uneasy, though whether that was at the reminder of his true self or the topic at hand, Tony couldn't discern. "That ... is unpleasantly disturbing."

"Dragon hatchers are by default beings of pure souls and hearts," Wong reminded them all of the thing Stephen and he had explained already just days ago. "The only reason a dragon summoner would ever take another dragon egg is because it is endangered and might need protection."

"Are you saying it is impossible for a summoner to become corrupt?" Rhodey sounded way too interested for Tony's liking.

_'Of course,'_ Elsa sounded in his head, almost startling him with how much louder she was. It felt like her voice was echoing through these halls despite her words being telepathic and not present in the physical world. _'Ib are the best of any race. They are not perfect individuals but they are kind, caring, protective, wise, considerate and, most of all, have strong morals. Ib are the bane of a dragon's existence. Our hair, if we had any, would fall out or turn gray with worry from a young age due to all our worrying about your martyr and self-sacrificial tendencies.'_

"Of course," Aidna replied at the same time, actually freaking Tony out a bit and making it a bit hard to focus on which conversation to focus on. "Not even the death of their dragon can corrupt a hatcher. At most, they will just withdraw into themselves and never again go out of their way to risk themselves for others. At least not for people who don't mean something to them."

"That's ... quite possibly the least corrupted corruption I've ever heard of," Carol commented with a snort even as they all shifted to leave Tony and Rhodey at the front as they were the best equipped and best protected to wander through this darkness.

"They are people on whom the continued existence of reality depends on. That is not at all surprising." Aidna grabbed at Tony's shoulder to stop him. "We're here. Just beyond that corner is the main chamber and in it, the Well of Ahtohallan. Once we step around it, things may change beyond any of our control. Just remember that no matter what, even if there is no feasible way for the intruder or intruders to enter the Well and survive, we must not let them take control of it. The hatcher _must_ be able to reach the egg to hatch the dragon once they arrive. The dragon might be able to wait for eternity for their hatcher but the hatcher is still very much mortal and susceptible to all sorts of fatalities until the moment of the union of their souls."

_'In other words,'_ said dragon piped up in his mind and Tony was at this point so used to her random comments and the new volume of her voice in his head that he wasn't even surprised or startled. _'Until I am properly awake and hatched, you are still very much prone to death and that is something I would rather avoid. I've grown much too attached to you to let you slip me by.'_

"So our only real plan here is to just keep everyone away from the Well? Sounds reasonable enough," Hawkeye commented and prepared an arrow even as everyone else also took out their preferred weaponry.

"Anything else we might want to know?" Barnes asked as he took off the safety off of the big gun Tony had modified for him to pack a lot more punch and power than the thing he had used against Thanos in Wakanda. He had to give it to Shuri, the girl was a genius and will one day probably far outdo him in weapons making, but one thing must never be forgotten: he was Tony Stark. He had once been the Merchant of Death and years later the title still stuck for no one could make quite as deadly and as effective weapons as he could. Vibranium weapons were all good and well but and Shuri was smart enough to make better weapons than almost anyone else on Earth, but she lacked the experience that had set Tony so far ahead of the competition. And given that he had spent days on an alien ship with an assassin who knew their weaponry and that he had fought some serious alien invaders a couple of times now and had to find ways to quickly overcome their weaponry, Tony had a bit of an edge on her still. One day, she might be better than himself simply because she will gain experience and he will stop making any weapons for anyone but as long as even only Rhodey - _especially_ Rhodey - needed a single gun once in a while, Tony will continue being in the race just to ensure his best friend was safe out in the field. If Barnes just so happened to profit from it all then that was fine. Tony had never been picky about sharing his toys with people he knew would use them for good.

And if he was certain of _one_ thing about the 'Team Cap' from that rather aptly named 'Civil War', it was that Barnes will never abuse his trust or the second chance he had been given at redemption. Tony actually kind of liked the guy. Definitely more than he had ever liked or trusted Rogers. Like he had said years ago, he didn't trust a guy without a dark side and people who thought themselves incapable of having it even less. _Everyone_ had something about themselves they were not proud of. Only psychopaths and maybe narcissists didn't.

"Yes. There are traps that have been activated the moment a forced entry has registered within the temple," Aidna replied almost casually as she checked if she had everything ready before she nodded at Tony and Rhodey to take up pint with Vision since they were the least likely to get seriously injured if there were any sudden surprise attacks from someone who might have arrived to the chamber before them. "Ice and rock golems, living flames and winds, solid lightning and water. The elements themselves personified with dragon magic older than all of us combined. They sense intent, deep as the center-most part of our soul. If any of you has even the slightest wish to harm or control the dragon egg for yourselves, stay back. Once you enter that room, everything will be clear and you will be made into a target."

"I thought you said all the magic is suppressed and that all the traps have been deactivated," Carol sounded both confused and aggravated at these news but Aidna only shrugged.

"The elements themselves are not magic in as such. They are nature and nothing is more natural than a dragon or anything influenced or created by it. Not to mention that these 'traps' are intent-sensitive, meaning they will not bring harm to the rightful hatcher of the egg. They are, if noting else, a fail-safe if anything or anyone ever manages to force their way in when it is nearly the time for the hatcher to come retrieve the egg or if the hatcher's safety or freedom is compromised. They are here to ensure that the summoning takes place without a hitch. Darkness and light can take care of any intruders who dare use magic on a hatcher against their will."

_'Good to know you would be safe either way,'_ Tony thought to Elsa and she hummed, not at all surprised by the paranoia of her ancestors given she probably understood the best just how vital her continued survival was for the rest of _everything_. "Okay, if everyone is ready, we should go in now." Everyone agreed and Tony marched on first, ignoring Elsa's indignant huff at him placing himself as a shield for the others and Rhodey's grumble that they should have marched out together. To their relief, the chambers were still empty of anyone else other than ten Nortuldra warriors keeping guard of the place, stationed around the Well and Tony tried not to gawk at the creatures created from the elements Aidna had listed moments ago prowling the room in vigilance, ready for any sort of attack. The Northuldra immediately drew up arms when they saw him round the corner - the news had apparently never reached them just _who_ the new hatcher was, not at all surprising given they had probably not had any interaction with anyone outside of the Temple for at least a day or two - and looked ready to attack him but a beautiful and frankly mesmerizing flaming wolf growled at them as it came to stand in front of Tony, joined by a lightning bear and - of _fucking _course - a water horse, all three elements making their displeasure known for such a course of action and the giants looked just as unhappy. The Sami didn't need more than a second to realize who they had pointed their weapons at before removing them and bowing their chins in apology.

Thankfully, all of that was dealt with before the Avengers really got to see the exchange - he knew it will be hell once it got out just _who_ was apparently chosen to be practically in control of one of the most powerful creatures in all of existence so he wasn't in any rush to bring about that moment of realization any sooner, thank you - and all his teammates got to see was Aidna and Migil being greeted by their people and explanations being exchanged between them in Sami. Tony, of course, had FRIDAY translate but he was just glad that they were keeping it all pretty much hush hush since he knew Thor and Loki knew Allspeak and that that would allow them to understand perfectly what they were saying. He didn't want the two Asgardians finding out they had both at one point choked the man on whose shoulders the rest of existence rested on. He was pretty sure that had to be a mortal offense somewhere given how important dragons were to, well, _everything_.

_'Tony, incoming!'_ Elsa's warning snapped him to attention with sharper focus than anything else ever had and he whirled around just in time for a big explosion to shake up the entire chamber as some sort of projectile landed mere feet away from the Sami by the Well. Most of them managed to put up shields and stay on their feet, but a couple of them were't fast enough and were sent flying, thankfully right over the Well and none of them fell into it. The new development immediately threw them all into defensive stances and they all scrambled together as they waited for the dust to settle and for the culprits to show themselves. Tony was both surprised and not at all when most of the animal-shaped elements kept close to his side while the giants roared and took residence in front of the Well, a wood one and a metal one joining them from two niche Tony hadn't even realized were there until that very moment. He was a bit confused by so many different 'elements' but he figured that was something he could focus on later as it was clear nothing here made any real sense anymore.

Especially not when the dust settled and, indeed, a man dressed much like Stephen and Wong who must be a fellow sorcerer and probably that Mordo fellow stood in front of a large group of armed individuals, wielding what was no doubt a stolen or improvised dagger from the very ice of the very glacier the Temple was hidden within. But the group being HYDRA was not even the surprising part, either, as standing by Mordo was a man that should have been long dead.

"Guten Tag, Captain America."


	8. Chapter 8

**Show Yourself Into The Unknown**

**Summary: The one where Thanos is dead, Tony has weird dreams instead of nightmares, the Avengers watch dubious Disney movies and mystical creatures are more than real. Oh, and the Cloak totally ships it.**

They all couldn't help but stare at the man, an impossible, gruesome man who had done terrible things and the world had thought itself to be rid of, a man that anyone has last seen on Vormir while they were desperately trying to figure out how to bring everyone back, a man who they had all thought would be dead at last, not even a specter haunting the place of the dead once and for all and Tony cursed that they had ever thought _anything_ or _anyone_ having even the faintest thing to do with the Infinity Stones would follow normal rules of common sense when all of their experiences so far had proven otherwise.

"Red Skull? But how?" Rogers muttered under his breath, angry and confused and disbelieving and frustrated that all of his hard work had been for naught as Johann Schmidt stood in front of them, dressed in some black version of Mordo's own wardrobe except for the polished Nazi-styled boots that all made him look like a Sith Lord or something, a darkly amused smirk on his face as he stared his old enemy down.

"There is much you don't know about this universe of ours, Steve Rogers. The Soul Stone has deemed my sentence served and I have been set free. Only I have been stuck in the aether for a number of months before Herr Mordo found me and set me free with the condition that I assist him in finding something of great value that would help us both shape the world into the form it should take."

"Teaming up with _Nazis_, Mordo? I thought you knew better than this." Stephen sounded disgusted and disappointed but Mordo only sneered at his fellow sorcerers.

"They at least don't threaten the balance of the universe we were once sworn to protect, Strange. That makes them more of my allies than the Sorcerers of Kamar-Taj ever could be without being hypocrites."

_'I admit, this was not what I was expecting,'_ Tony thought to Elsa even as he and FRIDAY went over the weapons and technology in HYDRA's possession. _'I expected a wizard hoard or a group of dark elves or an encove of witches to come for you but I most certainly did _not_ expect _HYDRA_.'_

_'Agreed,'_ Elsa sent back, just as confused as he was. Tony at least got to ask questions.

"Excuse me, but I'm a little confused here," he called out, drawing all the attention to himself, which was probably not the most ideal of circumstances, given who he was and whom he was facing. "What does _HYDRA_ get from all of this? What's the big endgame?" Several of the people present, himself included, flinched at the last word, usually those being the people from the battle on Titan or the only few people who got to hear the entire story of how that went down. Stephen was probably the one most uncomfortable with the word besides Tony himself, given that he was the one who had said it.

Schmidt looked over to Tony at the question, a strange expression settling over his fact. "Anthony Edward Stark, son of Maria. A pleasure to meet the man responsible for all of this. I must express my deepest gratitude. Had it not been for you, I would still have been trapped in the aether."

"What is he talking about, Tony?" Said pilot of a super advanced technological suit wanted to scream his head off and tear all of his hair off at the same time when the not-so-subtly accusing question came from the oh so virtuous Captain America. As if _Tony_ of all people would ever help _HYDRA_ or any of its members, unlike _some_ people, but he decided it would be for the best to focus on other things.

"Yeah? You mind elaborating that a little?"

The red faced man only shrugged, gaze lost into the far distance. "You set us all on this path a very long time ago. It is thanks to you that I am now free. Had you destroyed the Infinity Stones, I would have been imprisoned forever. As it stands, the universe is in balance and my sentence has been served. You have always been kept hidden from my gaze as the Soul Stone's warden. I cannot help but wonder if it is fate itself that hid you so no one could interfere with your destiny to sacrifice it all with no assurance of survival or if it was something else. I look forward to finding out as we cross paths in the future. For now, we have a dragon egg to retrieve."

"You still haven't answered his first question," Carol pointed out, already in a fighting stance, obviously reading with ease where all of this will end.

"Why, the answer is obvious! HYDRA gets the greatest weapon of all time! Who needs planes and tanks and firearms when you have a creature that can be all of that and so more? And even if we were never to find and corral its summoner, the egg itself is a power source unlike any other. It will replace the Tesserct very nicely."

_'Right, i forgot HYDRA is fanatical and loves to base their little treasure hunts on mythology.'_ Which didn't bode well for either him or Elsa, especially if that Mordo fellow had been filling their heads with who knows what rumors and legends. "FRIDAY, boot up the power in the weapon systems, fire up the propulsion system and take aim. We're about to enter an enormous, official shitstorm."

"You got it, Boss," came the answer from his AI even as Tony subtly shifted into a defensive stance.

"Well, Mr Krabs, I'm afraid that this is something you just can't be allowed to get your grubby hands on. Avengers!" And they were already firing and rushing at the enemy even before the signature line could be finished. Tony tried not to scoff at the fact that no one would have dared interrupt _Rogers_ if he were in the middle of saying it but he really couldn't give a fuck at the moment. There were far more important things to worry about. Like how it was now practically up to him to clash with Red Skull as he was the only of the present Avengers capable and experienced in fighting against a supersoldier and for reasons unknown - probably had something to do with being the guardian of the Soul Stone for several decades - Schmidt seems to be mostly unaffected by the defenses of the temple rendering every other powered individual useless, as he showed when he punched Rogers' lights out on first contact and Tony had to take over as Barnes dragged his best friend out of the fray.

Loki and Thor, despite no longer having whatever Asgardian magic or whatever it is that usually powered them, still were stronger than an Average human and they battled several opponents at a time, Loki's considerable size in his true form and what little magic he could preform thanks to the ice blades Aidna gave their sorcerers giving them an advantage no matter how many enemies swarmed them. As expected, Wong kept up by himself rather well, using the minimal magic at his disposal only when he seemed overwhelmed but he was a master of martial arts as much as he was of the Mystics ones. Carol teamed up with Rhodes, combining their military training, her experience with fighting all sorts of lifeforms and his still operating suit to take on groups of HYDRA soldiers at a time. Hope was a menace as she shrank to avoid incoming attacks only to return to regular size to kick some HYDRA ass and then disappear on them again and reappear where they least expected her. Barnes' metal arm was still 'enhanced', meaning far stronger than a human and he used it as well as his guns to keep the idiotic blond that was his best friend safe as HYDRA agents surrounded them.

Nebula was busy tearing the HYDRA squads apart as soon as they approached her with Vision almost trailing uncertainly after her, as though meaning to offer his aid but unsure of how to do so when the blue cyborg was so ruthlessly efficient. Wanda in turn trailed after her former lover with Barton keeping close to her to watch her back and keep her safe, shooting arrows as long as he had them while Romanov alternated between being Wilson's ground backup and Nebula's sometime assistant in bringing down men foolish enough to try and fight them. All of it would have probably been over in a couple of minutes with an overpowered team like the current lineup but Red Skull had apparently brought more people than they had thought with him and for every agent that fell down, indeed like in the myth after which they named themselves after, two more came to take up his place.

Stephen was, of course, locked in combat with the renegade sorcerer who had started this whole mess, exchanging blow after blow with the man, their ice blades clashing every so often as they threw at each other what looked like ice based spells that only made Tony want to massage away the growing headache at yet more Frozen references. You could say those two were the over-dramatic center of the fight despite Red Skull being the leader of HYDRA and the 'head' that should be cut down, what with how flashy some of their spells were and how distracting the things they yelled at each other could become. Those two seemed to have a lot of things to hash out with each other and both had chosen this as the ideal time to argue, well, ideals. And morals, from the sounds if it, judging from the few strings of conversation Tony managed to hear while he grappled with Schmidt and dodged the braver shots from his loyal followers. They were using some sort of energy weapons that were not based on the Tesseract, like they had been during WWII, so Tony could only guess Mordo had secured their alliance by bringing them some alternate source until they get their hands on the dragon egg.

At some point, Tony caught a glimpse of those elemental thingies fighting side by side with Aidna, Migil and their fellow Sami, the giants careful not to step of their allies and the more animal shaped ones running around and taking out anyone who tried to overwhelm one of their combatants. Remembering how Elsa had explained the Northuldra depended on natural magic more than cast it themselves, he guessed it was only natural that this was the form of fighting they developed between them. He only hoped the lack of needing to protect a dragon egg won't severe their centuries old co-dependence and alliance. He would feel infinitely bad about it even if getting Elsa out of the Well was necessary and something he won't be discussing. He'd come all the way out here for her. He wasn't leaving without her.

For all that Rogers had trained himself into a fairly good fighter over the years of being Captain America and having the perfected, superior supersoldier serum in his blood stream, Tony noted that Schmidt was actually a much tougher opponent. For one, the man seemed to have been properly battle trained, a part that had probably come from proper military training and earning his high position in the Nazi army instead of being given it as a propaganda stunt. Two, the man didn't pretend he wasn't going to go all out, not faking pulling his punched and instead going at Tony all out. Three, the man actually changed his style of fighting every once in a while in hopes of throwing Tony off guard and he wasn't stupid enough to rely on only one weapon, taking out hidden smaller guns, stun rays or knives if Tony hadn't already located them on his person with FRIDAY's help and did his best to get rid of them. And, finally, the man could read a situation and play dirty depending on his observations, using Tony's need to keep his teammates safe to his advantage every time he noticed he could. Had his suit not been upgraded for the final battle with Thanos, Stark would have been seriously hurt at some point.

He hated that he was worrying Elsa so much with his need to jump in the way of any attack that might distract or harm one of the other Avengers, but it was stronger than him and she knew it was a part of him she will have to accept. He was only grateful that at least Strange was outside of his scope of worry as Mordo didn't hesitate to remind everyone who dared try to eliminate his opponent for him that it was _he_ who will fall the Sorcerer Supreme and anyone who dares interfere will get a slit throat with an ice blade. That was at least one person less to worry about, even if that only meant Rhodey and Carol were targeted more. He kind of pitied the fools who thought just because she had no powers currently that Captain Marvel was a person to be messed with.

Loki, in the end, perhaps turned out to be the most useful in the fight, all things considered. Almost everything he touched immediately started freezing in an icy version of King Midas' curse, though Tony was perhaps a bit too busy at the moment to check if those touched survived under the ice or if their hearts have stopped once and for all. He wasn't sure how he felt about the whole things, especially given how much he still hated the cold.

"You can't keep us from our destiny, Herr Stark," Schmidt said at some point as they exchanged blows, Tony notably stronger ones since the magic of the place did nothing to technology so his suit was definitely an advantage over whatever wacky steroid cocktail the supersoldiers had. Still, Schmidt was holding his own fairly well, all things considered and Tony would just like the whole drama of this affair to be over and done with. There were better things he could do with his time than fighting super villains when there was a baby dragon waiting for him to hatch it.

"Funny, I thought your destiny was to rule the world with the supersoldier serum and if my history is right, that failed spectacularly." Tony dodged an enraged swing at that just barely, anger apparently firing the other up even more. He fired a repulsor in the man's face and couldn't help his satisfied smirk when Skull howled in pain. "Hm, and didn't you claim that your destiny was to spread HYDRA's influence everywhere with the might of the Tesseract at your back? Because that failed, too. And at _Rogers_' hands, too. You should be ashamed of yourself, really. The guy fumbles through life worse than I do but at least I have the excuse of being a PTSD torture victim, but whatever. The point is, under you, HYDRA had been denied it's 'destiny' several times and even more times afterwards. I would know. Besides mine and the Avengers' foiling of HYDRA's plans and operations, my Aunt Peggy had also stopped many of your followers' harebrained schemes. This time won't be any different."

"Then you will be the first I show my new power to!" With a feinted punch coming from the left, Tony became aware only too late of a charging energy bazooka to his right, just after a beam from it slammed into him and sent him sprawling. Another one was charged and firing not a second later, pushing him further towards the back of the room, where the Well of Ahtohallan rested against the northernmost wall. Tony scrambled to his feet and the only reason a third blast didn't hit him was because the fire wolf lunged at the two soldiers holding it up before they could fire, making the blast miss. It still hit the ceiling over his head and he had to put up a shield and stumble back several steps unless he wanted for the stones falling to hit him and knock him out.

"Tony!" Rhodey, who was the first to see his plight, called out, ignoring the screams of the soldiers being mawed over by a flaming wolf or the curses of the other two groups as a snake made of wind - he hadn't seen it before, but he was definitely glad that it was there to deal with those nasty bazookas - strangled the air out of their lungs, instead trying to fly over to his best friend. His call caught the attention of everyone else and several people - most notably the Northuldra warriors - had horrified looks settle on their faces when they saw his plight. Stephen also made to lunge towards Tony, jerking back with a ferocious amount of self-control - the man had become a tad bit overprotective since Tony nearly lost both his arm and his life in snapping everyone back into existence and Thanos out of it - but it was too late. Mordo had seen it, had found a weakness he could exploit and Tony screamed with raw fear when the man created some sort of ice lasso or whatever out of his magic and the ice dagger, holding War Machine back and then slamming the silver armor into the nearest wall, making more Avengers take cover for fear of falling debris.

"FRIDAY, Rhodey!?" He asked desperately, sighing in relief when War Machine's health systems gave him an update saying Rhodey was fine though had a bump on his head that ought to be checked for a possible concussion. His moment of distraction, though, was enough for Rogers, who had woken up, to charge at Schmidt and get wrestled to the ground and for the Nazi commander to grab the Vibranium shield out of his possession, take aim and hurl it at the unsuspecting Iron Man.

Only ... _'Tony!'_ Elsa's yell startled him enough to jump and that was probably what saved his head from being cleaved right off of his shoulders, though the force behind the throw was enough to leave some damage to his armor. He grimaced in far worse pain when he realized his Arc Reactor had been hit than if the shield had took his head off. The hit made him stumble and fall over but he was still not quite at the edge of the Well, but he was close enough for people to start panicking or celebrating, depending on if they had ever been loyal or willing HYDRA agents. (Yes, looking at you, Scarlet Witch. You're not as discrete as you like to think.) _'Get up! He's coming!'_

And indeed he was. Red Skull had managed to pick up the shield again and was making his way towards Tony, batting away the water horse when it charged at him, though the first hit managed to just displace some water more of them destabilized the horse long enough for Schmidt to make his way around it. Tony saw him coming and unleashed a small volley of miniature rockets as he let his armor repair itself, thanking whatever entities might count as gods that he had mastered nanotech before the shit with Thanos started and still kept upgrading it since.

He took a quick stock of the room, finding that most people were busy and that Strange seemed to be using much more magic than the other sorcerers could manage, even Mordo or Loki, apparently quite frustrated or very angry at the earlier attack but still relying solely on the dagger in his hand. Either way, he was left alone with Schmidt and he was at the edge of the Well, which really just looked like a very large schism in the ground, cold air blowing out of it every now and then and no light penetrating deeper than a couple of feet.

Just like in his dreams.

The thought had him looking around the room and seeing beyond the chaos. He should have realized sooner why the forest had seemed so familiar and why he hadn't been uneasy in the hallways despite how dark they were and what dangers they might house. He'd seen it all before, after all, thousands of times by this point, even if he didn't remember most of his dreams as clearly as he did the first time he just allowed himself to fall to the bottom of that freezing darkness and he met Elsa at last. The scene in front of him was as familiar as the background of the wide stone chamber, unremarkable save for several hallways protected by what he now knew to be the elements made 'corporal' and the big chasm that was called the 'Well' of Ahtohallan. The battle was familiar. The sheer number of people finally made sense why he saw a different face or set of faces in every dream.

It all made sense now.

Sure, he had realized his dreams were a lot more than just simple dreams and had physical, tangible proof from the moment Elsa healed his arm so no scars and no pain remained in the wake of her ice, but he had never really thought other aspects of his dreams were real, too. Even after walking into this temple he hadn't realized he was in his own dreamscape until he was staring into the abyss of the schism, the frigid cold darkness that had tortured his nights ever since Elsa became more insistent on him reaching the end of his dreams, the endless cold and blackness he had hoped never to encounter ever again. He remembered his first meeting with Elsa very clearly. He remembered what it felt like to be falling in that hole without an end until Elsa had found him. Or had it been the other way around, really?

Either way, he knows what he has to do.

_'Come my darling_

_Homeward bound_

_When all is lost_

_And all is found,'_ Elsa confirmed by singing the last few lyrics from the lullaby she had sang to him only last night.

Looking around at all of his teammates to make sure they wouldn't be endangered by his sudden disappearance from the fight, Tony activated his photon blaster and shot at Red Skull at full power, blasting the former warden of Vormir a few feet away from himself. Then, he activated his repulsors and took to the air, surveying the battle from this angle and shooting at a couple of HYDRA agents here and there that got too close to any of the Avengers. This, unfortunately, drew attention to him but none of them seemed to realize that Tony was flirting with the borders of being too far gone over the Well. He could feel the cold turbulence from bellow hitting him but the cold didn't reach him, the armor holding up perfectly well and almost perfectly steady with the stabilizers on his back. It wasn't until Nebula and Vision looked up from the far end of the other side of the room that someone realized the precarious position Tony was, as far as they were concerned, unwittingly in.

Nebula screamed, calling out to him, true panic settling over her features for the first time since Tony had met her and everyone once again looked up, finding Tony hovering over the great big hole in the ground with seemingly no end. Protests and curses and shots rang out all over the room but Tony paid them no heed as he flew higher, did a little salto, tapped his Arc Reactor once and hung in the air for a second as his armor retreated, to the utter shock and bafflement of everyone watching.

Somehow, he wasn't sure how, but he thought he met blue-green-gray eyes as he was suspended in such a way, for just a fraction of a moment, seeing them widen in alarm and grief.

And then he was falling, into the Well, into the darkness, into the cold, beyond light or warmth or salvation, disappearing from sight and from the world, leaving behind all that he had thought he'd known about the world as a new path opened in front of him. He fell, fell deeper and deeper, the descent so long he almost thought he was falling to the center of the Earth. The only light down here came from his own Arc Reactor and all he could see were the body parts closest to his 'heart', just as it always happened in his dreams.

_'Time to dive down deep and hope I don't drown, I guess.'_ He thought to himself as he fell, somehow not feeling the cold he had been expecting given what his dreams had been showing him for almost a year despite remembering that part only the last few times before he reached Elsa in his dreams. He was still grateful for that. It made the journey down that much easier to bear.

Soon enough, he saw a light in front of him, small and far away but growing bigger the closer he fell to it and a sense of welcome and love washed over him. Stark couldn't help himself but smile. He'd made it to the end. Elsa was moments away.

_'We finally get to meet in person, little one.'_

And Elsa positively vibrated at the message he sent her with so much affection that he was surprised he wasn't choking on it.

Still, he remembered how ominous the lullaby in its entirety is and the finishing words weren't something to be forgotten. Yes, _all_ is found, now, but what has been lost? What _will_ be lost? He can only hope that it's nothing yet and that he'll have the time to retrieve or save it, whatever it may be.

For now, he took a deep breath and dived right into the light.

00000

Outside of the Well, the universe shuddered.

It was time.


	9. Chapter 9

**Show Yourself Into The Unknown**

**Summary: The one where Thanos is dead, Tony has weird dreams instead of nightmares, the Avengers watch dubious Disney movies and mystical creatures are more than real. Oh, and the Cloak totally ships it.**

Stephen couldn't help the broken call of Tony's name that tore itself out of his mouth when the genius engineer started falling into the Well of Ahtohallan, abandoning his fight with Mordo and running towards the edge of the schism, ready to jump in after the man had it not been for the Cloak of Levitation to hold him back at the last second. The fighting had all but stopped around him, everyone too shocked by what had happened and what Iron Man had so casually done but the Sorcerer Supreme had no space nor mind capacity to spare on any of them. He could only think of Tony and of needing to save him, needing to _make sure the idiot lived_ after all the trouble Stephen ha went through to ensure there was a future in which the man he had unwittingly fallen in love with over fourteen million six hundred and five viewed potential futures can _live_ and see the fruits of his harsh labors.

He wasn't even aware of doing it, of drawing on so much dimensional energy and summoning so much magic that the wards blocking it installed in this place could not hold it. He was unknowingly bending the universe to his will, even if in this small space and even smaller capacity, but he was doing it. He was breaking through wards placed by dragons all in his desperation to use magic to reach into the Well to catch Tony before his friend could freeze to death. The coldness from inside hit his face and actually nearly froze the _air_ in his lungs but he didn't give up. The Cloak held him bag far enough so he couldn't fall over but he could still gaze down into the gaping hole that had swallowed Tony in a second with its endless darkness and frigid cold.

The glowing magical chains and mandalas he sent down caught nothing, _reached_ nothing, _illuminated nothing_. No matter how many spells he sent down, there was no way for the glow of magic to penetrate the dense veil of shadows separating the Well's secrets and the rest of the world. Stephen tried and tried, again and again, but he caught nothing. Every mandala he brought back was empty, no signs of ever having touched anything and he was _horrified_ to see that the deeper he sent them, they actually started _freezing_, turning to solid ice if he let them down further than a twenty seconds fall. Forty seconds fall was enough to leave them, _pure energy_, frozen in _ice_, as though they had been _water_ at some point.

A minute fall from his magical lassos and chains reached such a cold that ice started traveling upwards, towards his hands, towards the core of his magic and had it not been for Wong to snap him out of it, he would have been frozen more surely than Loki's opponents in this fight had been.

Everyone was staring as Stephen tried light spells to at least be able to _see_ despite it already being clear that nothing broke through the dense shadows. They all watched as he tried shooting fire into the well, opening dimensions and releasing lightning the likes of which Thor would be jealous of, unleashing winds from distant planets that would have chipped _diamonds_ and yet nothing would get him the results he was seeking.

Tony Stark remained well out of Stephen Strange's reach and Stephen feared what the knowledge that Tony had just taken a one way trip right in front of him will do to his sanity. After everything he had been through just to ensure that he man he had somehow fallen in love with between their posturing on the 'flying doughnut' and viewed potential future number three, he had lost Tony anyway.

Why? Why had the man jumped when he had _known_ nothing but the summoner would be accepted near the egg? Aidna had _stressed that fact_ like a _million times_ since they'd met her and her people! Why would Stark just ... jump in? Just ... give up? Did he just give up? Was he tired and decided this was the best way to go to keep his most powerful and most dangerous armor out of grubby hands who would use it for ill, for their own selfish purposes? Had he been fatally injured and had decided dying in the Well would be the more epic way to go?

Or had he been depressed, overwhelmed and Stephen hadn't noticed? The guilt was ready to consume him whole even as a part of his brain started reassuring him that Tony had been doing remarkably well, not even suffering from nightmares about Titan and everything they had lived through.

Only he then remembered that Tony _had_ had _some_ form of weird dreams that had been keeping him awake most nights in the past month or so. He had seen the billionaire more than once with some serious, dark bags under his eyes. He had been a bit jumpy and distant lately but Rhodes hadn't seemed concerned and Peter - oh dear Vishanti, Peter! How was he to tell the boy what had happened to his precious mentor? Under Stephen's watch, no less! - hadn't expressed any worries, either. Still, had Tony simply managed to fool them all so well that none of them noticed a possible darkness fester and take hold of him?

At least Nebula or Vision would have noticed, the former because she had practically become obsessed with ensuring Tony took care of himself so he wouldn't be lost to her as well and the latter because of the Mind Stone once again in his forehead.

And if it was not depression or being overwhelmed ...

Stephen's hand shot out before he was even aware of it, a blast of pure magic hitting Maximoff and pinning her to the wall. That finally snapped everyone out of their disbelief but Stephen refused to slow down to let it all settle in their minds for fear of how his own will handle under this grief, under the loss after Donna and the Ancient One, after _everything_. He flexed his broken, shattered fingers and the young woman screamed in pain as his power constricted around her, squeezing her as he slowly stood up, gaze never once leaving the hole where Iron Man had last been seen in.

"I would advise you, Ms Maximoff, to be completely honest with me when I ask you this question, for if I detect even a _hint_ of a lie, I will not _hesitate_ to rip your mind to shreds and then throw you into the Well to feel every agonizing second of being frozen to death." When he looked up to the scared out of her mind and powerless - the Temple's wards were working in his own favor as well as against it - Scarlet Witch, the Sokovian woman looked too petrified to even _think_ of lying. "Have you influenced Tony's decision in any way, in _any single small way_, to jump into the Well?"

"Strange, now is not the time-" He didn't spare Rogers a glance as he willed the man's voice away, ignoring the panic and rage that rose through the rouge Avengers and refusing to even glance at Rhodes and see his grief for fear of it triggering his own or at Wong for fear of his reason quelling his rage.

"Have you?" He demanded of Maximoff and the woman shook her head furiously in denial.

"I didn't, I swear I didn't! I couldn't! I can't use my powers at all, I have no access to them! I had no hand in Stark's decision, I swear on Pietro's soul!"

"Let her go, Master Strange," Migil said in a surprisingly mild and soothing tone, as though he were talking with a frightened animal which he was afraid of spooking even more. "To use magic here is near impossible. She does not possess the control to do so." He hesitated, almost as if he was afraid to say more but prowled on regardless. "Everything will be fine."

That snapped something in Stephen and a wave of magic burst from him, slamming into everyone inside the chambers and most of them hit various walls, winded from the impact and dropping to the ground in an effort to regain their breath. "Fine? _Fine_?! Nothing will be _fine_! Tony is _gone_! After everything I've done, after every promise I made and every reassurance I gave him that this will all end well, _I failed_! He's _gone_! Nothing will ever be _fine_ again!"

Everyone kind of just stared at him as he breathed hard, still not turning away from the Well, his hands shaking more than he had ever seen them before and this time he didn't let the Cloak wrap itself around them like he usually would. What was the point? He had failed the one person he had promised himself never to fail, not after everything he had put the genius through on Titan and afterwards, right up until everyone was brought back. How is he to be Sorcerer Supreme if he can't keep a single promise he made? He was pathetic. Even after all these years, just when he thought his life was looking up, he _fails_.

He'd failed his little sister, he'd failed his master and now ...

a dark, familiar chuckle drew him out of his dark, spiraling thoughts and Stephen's head snapped in the direction of its source. Mordo was getting to his feet after having recovered from the blast and impact, shaking off whatever dizziness had been caused and focusing dark eyes and a very cold smile at his one friend.

"Lo and behold, Stephen Strange, Sorcerer Supreme. Can't even hold his emotions in check, though I must admit that you've impressed me with what you just did. Not even the Ancient One, may her traitorous soul be devoured by the Dark Dimension she drew power from, had ever been able to cast spells in this temple. Still, that does not cover your weakness." The amusement drained from his face and he ignored how his own side was calling out to him not to be insane and provoke the only person currently capable of drawing on their power and further pissing them off. Stephen regarded his once mentor just as coldly even as rage boiled in his blood, just under his skin. "You are a disgrace to our order, to the oaths we have all sworn no matter how meaningless they seem to be to everyone else but myself. You fight and care only about yourself. You misuse the gifts given to you and assume they are your god given right. But everything has its price, Strange, and I had warned you. _The bill comes due, always_. and it has finally come and it has finally been settled. You must be so relieved that someone else had paid it for you."

The shield he drew up _broke_ like shattered glass under Stephen's assault, much to the man's shock. Mordo had obviously not thought that Stephen could actually do more than release some raw bursts of energy but even that was a weapon and a rather deadly one when utilized properly. Stephen ignored everyone and everything else as he stalked towards Mordo.

He had been lenient in face of everything this man had done for him while he had still been an apprentice at Kamar-Taj.

He had held back out of the respect he held for his oath and how seriously he took them.

He had held out hope for a none violent solution out of a long lost friendship.

Mordo will learn how the Sorcerer Supreme fights when he's not holding back any longer.

And how Doctor Stephen Strange fights when he's been finally, truly and completely enraged.

00000

Completely oblivious to what was going on in the world far above him, Tony Stark realized he had somehow blacked out at some point and he only knew this because he found himself waking up lying on an ice covered ground with ice covered boulders all around him, seemingly placed at random, as though he were in a frozen inside of a cave.

Only it was much, _much _different and not at all how he remembered this place to be from his dreams.

For one, this place was not endlessly dark so the only thing Tony could see was himself because he was illuminated by the light of his Arc Reactor. Instead, the boulders he could see all around were illuminated by ice columns that resembled perfectly straight trees without a crown of leaves in sight, instead their tops disappearing into that blackness he had expected to surround him wherever he looks. The ground he slowly brought himself up to stand on was also made of ice and it provided just as much illumination and wasn't slippery at all, at least it wasn't while he was standing perfectly still. As soon as he made to make a step in any direction, the texture of the surface lost all friction, which was curious enough by itself. He knelt down and ran a hand over the surface, finding the texture resembled a polished wooden table's surface and yet when he moved his feet, it felt like ice. It was weird, okay, but it wasn't nearly as strange as the way the background was black.

He had described the place at first as a frozen cave but in truth, there were no boundary walls, the place seemingly infinite and coated in shadows of forever. The breaths that came out of his mouth appeared as puffs of hot air hitting cold temperatures and yet he didn't feel like he was in any way suffering from a change in climate, especially one so sudden as this should have been.

Seriously weird and very curious.

"FRIDAY?" He called out as he tapped his Arc Reactor and activated the speaker there, not bothering with covering himself in the suit. His voice traveled through the empty space and made the pillars of ice vibrate, causing them to sing. It was a pleasing sound, one Tony was tempted to record. He was sure DJs and music producers around the world would give a limb for the recording.

"Boss!" FRIDAY greeted him, excitement and anxiousness and utter relief battling for dominance in her tone. "I'm so glad you're alright. It's good to hear your voice again. Please don't repeat that. I might bust a processor."

He couldn't help but feel touched by his creation's concern. She was so sweet, even if most of the world wouldn't even consider her a real person. "Sorry, baby girl. I'll try to give you a heads up next time or be more careful." He'll probably have to be as of soon enough. His life will be connected to Elsa's, after all. "Where are we? What time is it? And what's the temperature? This place looks like it should be colder than a freezer!"

"I'd dare say we're in the Well of Ahtohallan, Boss, and it's been twelve minutes since you jumped in. I've lost all connection with the outside world and can't contact anyone for help. The scanners read that the temperature is zero degrees."

"Celsius? Well, that's not so bad." He honestly thought it was much, _much_ worse.

There's a moment of silence before FRIDAY replies again. "Not exactly, boss."

He frowns, confused. "Fahrenheit?" Because not even that was all that bad, though he should have been considerably more uncomfortable and freezing his ass off, but oh well. It definitely didn't garner the hesitance in FRIDAY's speech patterns.

"More like Kelvin." Tony felt his world freeze and wondered for a hysterical moment if that was a phrase of speech a bit too close to home as he tried to compute that he was somehow alive and perfectly well at the _Absolute_ fucking Z_ero_. "You seem to be fine, though, even though it defies all logic and reason of scientific laws, but I am grateful for this lapse as it means you survived what should have been a fatal shock to your system and the shutdown you should rightfully be experiencing at this temperatures given that all of the water in your organism should have frozen and the air in your lungs should have turned solid."

"You can skip the morbid details, FRI, and focus on scanning the surrounding area. This place looks nothing like my dreams and I need to find Elsa as fast as I can so that we can get out of this hole and kick HYDRA's ass," he said as he started walking, exploring the 'forest' he had somehow ended up in.

"Dreams? Elsa?" His AI asks with understandable confusion and Tony sighs.

"You know how I kept having reoccurring dreams since early this year to a couple of days ago, when this whole mess started escalating?"

"Of course, though you've never mentioned the nature of your dreams."

"Yeah, well, that's because I din't exactly remember them until the last few weeks. Turns out they weren't really dreams at all. More like a forewarning, a summoning call for me to come and wake Elsa up."

He didn't elaborate, knowing his baby girl was more than smart enough to figure it all out given the context of all of the recent Avengers meetings and the nature of their current mission, as well as their current location. It only takes her a number of seconds before she speaks up again, sounding bit embarrassed and miffed. "I should have realized the second the general personality of dragon summoners was explained by Doctor Strange and Master Wong that it can only be you, Boss."

Tony doesn't know whether to laugh or cry at that, even as his creation's faith in him warms his heart. "Thanks, baby girl. Well, now that you know, how about you help me find the new member of our ragtag family?"

"Already on it," the AI assured in her soothing Irish lilt and occasional beams scanned his surroundings as he wandered around. At one point, the 'trees' because incredibly dense and Tony would have turned away if he hadn't realized they were not only glowing with a brighter intensity but that they were also humming. A familiar melody that made him snort even as he went along with it. After all, it was already a running internal joke with Elsa, so why stop it now just because he knows half of Frozen was deliberately planned by the Northuldra just to catch his attention so he may come for his dragon.

"Every inch of me is trembling

But not from the cold

Something is familiar

Like I dream I can reach but not quite hold."

"Boss?" FRIDAY, who had only witnessed silly behavior like this once and hadn't gotten an explanation the last time it had happened, asked a bit apprehensively but Tony put a reassuring hand over the Arc Reactor as he watched their surroundings light up with the same Aurora Borealis like the one that had appeared as a result the first time he had sang to Elsa outside of his own head and dreams. The ice trees hummed, providing the same background for the song like the track from Frozen 2 and Tony laughed, wondering what Idina Menzel, who voiced Elsa and sang the original of this song, would think of their rendition of it.

"I can sense you there

Like a friend I've always known

I'm arriving."

_"And it feels like coming home?"_ FRIDAY actually released a panicked screech of static from the speakers of the nanites housing unit when Elsa's voice vibrated through the bottom of the Well and Tony laughed.

"I have always been a fortress."

_"Cold secrets deep inside_

_You have secrets too."_

"But you don't have to hide," Tony sang as he he rounded a boulder and boldly went straight into the heart of the extremely dense part of the forest of ice pillars. He briefly wondered if this was what musicians meant when they said notes and tones had color as the 'forest' lit up like a very pretty rainbow all around him the deeper in he went and the more both he and Elsa sang. He feels a bit bad for ignoring FRIDAY but she'll have to wait for a bit. He could feel the pull again, right in what he thinks might be his soul, and he was helpless to resist it, nor did he want to. Elsa had waited long enough. "Show yourself."

_"I'm dying to meet you._

_Show yourself."_

"It's your turn

Are you the one I've been looking for," the one who will understand him like no one else, when no one else can, who will be in his corner until the rest of time, the companion to his soul, family in the very essence of their being and vice versa.

"All of my life?" They sang the question together and Tony cracked a grin at the absolute explosion of color from everywhere, the ''ceiling', the 'trees' and even the icy ground as their voices tuned into perfect harmony. "Oh, show yourself!

I'm ready to learn." When they sang the melody together and then Ahtohallan itself sang back to them, as though in acknowledgement that they were indeed a pair matched by the stars themselves, sparks started falling from the 'sky' like snow of light and a childish grin and immeasurably excitement coursed through Tony. He couldn't help but ask FRIDAY to make him ice skates - he wanted to go faster, damn it, and treading on 'thin ice' was a bit too literal here since, now that everything was so bring, he could _see_ through the 'ground' and there was only more darkness on the other side that he would rather not explore for fear of _that_ being the 'too deep' that will 'drown' him that the lullaby mentioned - out of his nanites on his feet and then he set off, gliding through the trees and around boulders with an effortlessness that should be beyond him, but he felt in tune with this place like he only ever had with his own labs that he had made with his very own two hands. "I've never felt so certain

All my life I've been torn." There was always something he needed to do, something he had to take into account and for years now, he couldn't be himself without it being too much for some party or the other that he had to make nice with. This place took all of that pressure right off of his shoulders and he felt like the kid he had never really gotten to be when he was of the appropriate age and he relished in it, forgetting the outside world, even if only for a second.

He had a right to a moment of bliss just like anyone else, after all.

"But I'm here for a reason

Could it be the reason I was born?"

_"Oh, definitely,"_ came Elsa's cheeky and excited comment, making him laugh as he did a little jump and flip with a grace and elegance he had thought he had long since lost. He once upon a time used to love ice skating. It was one of the many things Jarvis had taught he when he was little to make him feel just a tiny bit more like the normal kids he never got to make friends with and it was a cherished skill.

"I have always been so different."

_"Normal rules did not apply."_

Tony grinned at the agreement, focusing on the path ahead where he noticed more light was shinning, resembling the star he had gotten to know in his dreams to represent Elsa. So he was close. _So_ close. Anticipation coursed through him and and he hurried his pace. "Is this the day?

Are you the way

I finally find out why?"

_"Show yourself!"_ Elsa all but demanded and Tony was all but happy to oblige, finally breaking through the 'treeline' to find himself before a pedestal with a glowing, vaguely egg shaped object dominating a small clearing in the 'forest', looking all pretty and inviting. Stark didn't hesitate to accept the invitation, skating closer but at a slower pace and reaching out to the egg. _"I'm dying to meet you."_

"Show yourself," he agreed, a hand gently caressing the smooth side of the last thing separating them. "It's your turn."

_"Are you the one I've been waiting for_

_All of my life?"_

"Oh, show yourself!

Let me see who you are," He called and soothed, taking the egg in both hands and retracting all of his nanites back into their housing unit, curing around the soon to be hatched dragon. It was growing warmer under his touch but it did not bother him any more than the cold, even if it was indeed starting to resemble a star in both brightness and heat.

The Well was positively singing around them, vibrating with energy unlike any Tony had ever felt before and yet it did indeed feel like coming home. He couldn't remember if he had ever felt so loved or so accepted, like he _belonged_ in his life, not even in his own mother's embrace, not even in the wonderful hugs Jarvis would give him. It was actually more reminiscent to the sensation that snapping his fingers with the Infinity Stones on his hand than anything he had ever felt with actual people but this was still slightly different. He understood now why dragons called their summoners their Ib, their very _souls_. He felt like Elsa was surrounding him in enough love to drown all of the bad experiences he had went through in life.

"Come to me now," he coaxed lovingly, stroking the surface of the shell in invitation.

_"Open your doors," _countered Elsa and he did. He opened the doors of his heart and of his soul and welcomed his soulmate with expecting arms.

"Don't make me wait

One moment more."

_"Come to me now,_" Elsa asked in turn as the ground disappeared from his feet and Tony felt no panic or fear, trusting powers that be to not drop either of them. Besides, FRIDAY was overprotective. If he lost altitude, she won't hesitate to engulf him in the suit and save him before he could fall.

"Open your doors."

And Elsa did.

And he dived right in, as welcome in her heart as she was in his.

_"Don't make me wait_

_One moment more!"_

Suddenly, there was a big burst of energy and Tony almost jumped out of his skin when thousands upon thousands of voices suddenly sang, filling the dark 'woods' with 'life', as dragon souls gathered to greet into the world a new young dragon and one soul in particular, of a beautiful pure white color, circled around Tony and Elsa's egg in his arms as they ascended higher and higher.

_"Where the north wind_

_Meets the sea_

_There's a river_

_Full of memory!"_

The single soul in the shape of the beautiful white dragon that had been circling them came to a stop in front of Tony, ice blue eyes meeting his as the egg in his hands shattered and burst and something small, both cold and warm, sharp and soft, smooth and scaly, light and heavy, small but with the potential of immense growth and most importantly, kind and _powerful_ appeared in its place and Tony knew, even before the sudden flash of light died, that that was his little star, his dragon, his _Elsa_ and this long gone spirit could only be one entity as it gazed at them with unending love and pride.

_"Come my darling,_

_Homeward bound."_

"I am found!" Dragon's and Ib's voices thundered and the world vibrated as their bond snapped into place at long last.

"Oh, show yourself," the three of them sang. "Step into the power!

Grow yourself

Into something new!"

Tony and Elsa were hurtling upwards and leaving the ghost of what must have been her mother behind with the rest of the dragon souls as they went up and up, towards the Aurora Borealis, holding onto each other and Tony wondered if this, too, had somehow been influenced by the Sami. He found he didn't care as long as he's with Elsa and they get to go home from this together.

"You are the one I've been waiting for

All of my life!

Oh show yourself!"

The spirits sang as the new bonded pair entered the colorful lights and burst through them, through the darkness, going further and beyond until Tony saw the whole universe flash in his eyes like when he had taken the Infinity Stones and their power coursed through him and they burst through a barrier he did not understand-

A deafening roar met the shinning morning sun and the world shook under its might as a rainbow of colors exploded in the bright skies above the very edge of where Norway's steep northern coasts met the raging sea bellow and it was a roar of triumph.

Crystal blue eyes opened.

Reality sang.


	10. Chapter 10

**Show Yourself Into The Unknown**

**Summary: The one where Thanos is dead, Tony has weird dreams instead of nightmares, the Avengers watch dubious Disney movies and mystical creatures are more than real. Oh, and the Cloak totally ships it.**

She was beautiful, absolutely breathtaking, no matter how small her size was compared to the noise she had just created, the power she already held or the responsibilities and destiny resting on her oh so young and deceptively fragile shoulders.

Despite being suspended in the air by nothing but a magical bubble seemingly made out of light or some form of glowing, pure energy, the only thing Tony Stark's honey brown eyes could focus on was the little dragon, no bigger than a chubby cat, and the almost otherworldly beauty of his new partner in life, the mate to his soul, the one person he was destined to know better than anyone else simply by either of them existing.

Elsa stared back, equally mesmerized, as though she, too, couldn't get enough of the sight in front of her own eyes. As though Tony could ever compare to her striking self.

She was truly amazing, absolutely stunning, really. There were no words to describe her appearance. Elsa looked to be somewhere between an avian and a reptilian type of dragon, having scales that were as long and as sot to the touch as feathers but that could turn as sharp as ice daggers and as rough as a crocodile's skin made out of diamonds. The initial color of them was of the glacier which hid Ahtohallan - making Tony briefly wonder if it is her who had manipulated her surroundings even before she had been fully aware of her own sentience - but depending on how the light hit each scale-like feather made of ice, the reflection it gave off could be anything from blue, to pink to a really pretty shade of purple.

Her eyes resembled the ghost of her mother's, only they were more crystal like than the color of ice and seemed somehow warmer for it. Her whole body was covered in the scales - Tony decided he'll be calling them scales despite them being softer than any feathers that had ever filled any of his pillows, just to go easier on himself - including her wings, which indeed resembled more a bird's wings than a bat's leathery ones. No one would ever mistake her for anything other than an angel. It seemed fitting, given her voice, especially when she sings. Her maw wasn't scary or nightmarish at all. It resembled the jaws of the dragons from Game of Thrones while they were still small, maybe from season three, which only made her all the cuter what with her big, sparkly, soulful eyes. She had some spikes around her face that felt soft to his touch but he didn't doubt that they could be as hard as the ice that had encased her protection for this long if she needed it to be so.

She had four limps and a tail, each paw having five actual fingers, something one doesn't usually see on lizards or depictions of dragons, as it's usually three or four. Then again, dragons obviously aren't the mindless beasts people had made them out to be and hey, thumbs! It's what allowed human kind to become what and who they are today, along with other physiological characteristics, so why shouldn't beings that were practically older than a good part of the created universe not had opposable thumbs to do with as they please and not be dependent on tiny humans to do things for them, right?

"Elsa," he greeted his dragon after he had drank in his fill of the sight of her and the dragon responded with a rumbling purr before she all but flung herself into his embrace, making a home for her head right over his excitedly beating heart.

"Tony, my Ib," she greeted back, her voice all but purring and her whole body nearly vibrating with it. Tony only hugged her, overjoyed in a way he had never imagined himself ever to be with just touching her like this, holding her. It felt like the first time Dum-E came online but perhaps a hundred times amplified or like when JARVIS had first greeted him with a polite and disapproving 'Sir' after he had come online to a drunk off his ass Tony and had to watch over him on his very first night of being alive and then lecturing him in the morning. Sure, that lecturing had been dispassionate and more out of the need to satisfy his own primary code which was in place so he would look out for his creator and had only later become true caring as JARVIS grew beyond his coding, but it had been the first step and hearing that long lost voice of his beloved butler had soothed something deep in Tony he had never even realized needed soothing.

This moment felt just like that but also somehow even stronger, more intense. He guessed it had a lot to do with his connection to Elsa and he enjoyed every second of it. "Welcome to the world, Elsa. It ain't a pretty place but it's the only one we've got."

"We'll make it better," the dragon reassured and they fell silent, just enjoying each other's presence for a while, enjoying the touch they shared after only having had hints of it through a world of dreams in Tony's mind. Stark rather enjoyed how much better it felt in the physical world than in his dreams. His dreams he could forget but when she was finally here, now, there was no way he will ever forget because she can always remind him. They no longer had to wait for him to be asleep to see each other. "Though, as much as I love us being like this, it is for the best if we return you to your comrades. I sense a great deal of power rising above the Well and whoever is doing it might cost themselves their life. Or at the very least their sanity. We'd all be much better off without a mad Sorcerer Supreme."

"Stephen!" Tony turned around, as if looking for a way back to the main chamber of the temple but his surroundings looked like they were nowhere near the glacier in Norway where he'd last been before he'd jumped into an essentially endless hole. His surroundings, for the lack of a better word, looked enchanted. The landscape was that of a mountain range covered in snow and ice, majestic and elegant in its cold beauty with an endless sky of countless stars and visible galaxies hanging overhead, not a trace of any sort of interference ever having touched this place. "Where the hell are we, anyway? And how do we get back? Stephen will go nuts if I put him through something like the Snap again. He might just wrap me up in bubble wrap and put me in one of his glass cases in that magical museum of his in retaliation."

"You are perfectly safe and more than perfectly fine, Tony," Elsa said with an amused snort, drawing away and out of his arms to fly around him, her little wings carrying her with ease despite not looking strong or big enough for it. By all rules of physics and nature about wingspans in comparison to the body they carried, she shouldn't have been able to stay in the air and yet she was. The scientist in Tony raged against it but he attributed the phenomenon to magic. It was simply easier that way, at least until they were back home and away from Nazi terrorist organizations and scheming wizards and there wasn't a Sorcerer Supreme about to snap. "We will go back in a moment, we're still technically within the Well of Ahtohallan, though the scenery before you is anything but."

"Then what is it? _Where_ is it?"

"This," Elsa flew in a circle around the sphere of magic that was holding them up and above the mountains. "Is the ancestral plane of all dragons, my home, should it have existed still. Thousands of years before first multicellular lifeforms emerged in the multiverse, Ahtohallan started dying, for it was a dimension removed from the rest of reality, meant to watch over it for all of eternity. But dragons kept going out and back in, interacting with the world around ours, studying it and the potential it carried and protecting it from beings from other planes of existence who would feed on the energies of this new, undefended universe. Leaving Ahtohallan meant weakening its natural defenses and outside influences started seeping in. My ancestors knew their home world was dying, so they left and settled in this universe and many others. We have lived here long before any of your species have been born, Anthony Edward Stark, and by that I do not mean just humanity. We are the wardens of magic, of reality, of the energies that connect all the different universes within the multiverse. We are those who manage it. Without dragons-"

"The universe would fall to ruin and cease to exist," Tony finished for her even as he marveled at the world around him, Ahtohallan, the place where Elsa would have lived had her kind just left the multiverse to tear itself apart, killing life before it could even _be_ life in its chaotic beginnings. Dragons hadn't been _created_ to manage the multiverse, even though they were perfectly capable of it. They had taken that responsibility onto themselves all on their own, dooming their peaceful, perfect world for the sake of the ancestral beginning of creatures who will one day be their ruin, their doom. "Wait, if your kind existed so long ago, before anything else, how did the eggs hatch? How were there any dragons at all if a human is their Ib - their all, their soul - but humans hadn't existed back then?"

"Hm, not only humans are Ib, my Ib," the little dragon explained, humming to herself even as the orb of magic started slowly descending. Tony tried not to feel discomforted by the illogic of what was happening to him. "Before humanity, many other species had been fulfilling that role. Any sentient species can be a dragon's Ib. And before any such species existed, we were free of such connections and our lives were all the more empty for it. We could be immortals. We are magic and energy and _existence_ more than anything else in this multiverse. We are limitless. But, once upon a time, a very long time ago, one of my ancestors met a man, they came to respect each other, to care for each other and soon, they were inseparable. I believe my ancestor was in love, a love dragons later on learned could be reserved only for Ib but was unknown to them before that point in time. When the man started aging and came closer to his 'expiring', my ancestor grew near mad with loss and grief. His fellow dragons did him a mercy, a favor, a gift that then transcended onto all dragons until the end of times. They bound his soul, his very essence to the man's and the man stopped dying, stopped aging. He was at full strength once more and the love they felt for each other was now on a loop being fed by them both, coursing through their beings and uniting them like nothing either of them had ever felt. Out of necessity, eons later, when war raged on that man's planet, his people came to him and his dragon for assistance. They explained to them the nature of their connection and my ancestor called for a handful of dragons to join them. Five more matches were made. As time passed and more bonds were made both out of pleasure and out of necessity, dragons came to realize finding their Ib was the best thing to have ever happened to our kind. At one point, all of the old dragons found their Ib and their children were the first ones to be _birthed_ with their souls already reaching out across time and space and the boundaries of reality to another's. That is how the bonds came to be. Humanity itself is a very young candidate for the potential Ib."

"You sure do know _a lot_ for a newborn," he said pointedly even as he pondered the small history lesson he just got from his companion. According to what Elsa had just said, dragons could have lived until the rest of time as invulnerable beings, untouchable to others and even to time itself. Yet they had chosen to make themselves vulnerable because other species brought excitement and ... well, he guessed some _meaning_ to their lives. Something else other than a duty to a world that is too different from them to appreciate them. No wonder Elsa said only those willing to sacrifice and be kind can be their summoners.

There were approaching a faint mist the lower they came and Tony guessed that once they entered it, they'll soon find themselves back in the Temple or the Well. At least now he understood why the place was called _of Ahtohallan_. Who would have thought this would go from a Disney princess movie right into Alice in Wonderland, what with falling into a hole and ending up in a world that all but didn't make sense but was still so full of _wonders_.

"Dragons share a memory," Elsa replied to his observation, startling and horrifying him with the implications of that on such a young mind. "Not individual memories, but our general history. It protects young dragons in situations like mine. What would I do, all alone with no elder dragon around, when my Ib finds me and summons me from my egg but I do not know how to proceed with the most basic needs of my life? I'd be vulnerable."

"So it's sort of like an instinct? An extended form that gives you background knowledge so you can't be tricked?"

"In essence, yes. Brace yourself, this part might be tricky." The warning came just as they entered the center part of the mist and every bit of light was blocked out, even from his reactor and from Elsa herself. Thankfully, it lasted only a couple of seconds before they were back at the bottom of the Well, where Tony had woken up and not from where they had left, the little alter where Elsa's egg had been. "The innermost sanctuary is to be utilized only in times of need. It is an entrance into the memory of Ahtohallan and extremely sacred and also _very_ dangerous."

The bubble that had been carrying them burst and Tony landed easily on his feet, though staying that way was a bit of a challenge given that the ground was still weird, nice friction while still and utterly slippery they second he made the tiniest of movements with his feet. "Well, that's just perfect," he mumbled in dismay when he realized he was back to square one, having _no idea_ how or where to go, only this time he was trying to _get out_.

Still, on a more cheery note, FRIDAY sounded extremely happy to 'see' him again after his brief disappearance from her reach when he and Elsa had ended up in the memory of Ahtohallan. _'I can't believe that this is my life now.'_ As if he didn't have enough crazy already piled up on his plate.

"So, how do we get out of here? We should hurry, before those idiots blow the entire place sky high."

Elsa floated around him and reached one of the boulders coated in ice. As soon as she was just a few meters away, the boulder glowed and a door appeared right in the middle of it, with a staircase leading upwards and some sort of lighting and everything. Tony stared at it for a long moment before figuring 'Hey, this is my life. What can you do?', shrugging and starting to climb, easily welcoming Elsa into his arms when she insisted on snuggling against his chest.

00000

Meanwhile, it was absolute chaos in the main chamber of the Temple of Ahtohallan as everyone panicked over the sheer power the Sorcerer Supreme seemed to hold. He wasn't holding back and Loki, Wong and the Northuldra had to keep up and remake shields over and over again to keep the Avengers safe as Mordo tried to fight back and HYDRA agents ran for their lives. There was no trace of the usually merciful, oath-bound doctor in sight as Stephen let himself vent and it was interesting to see him reach for the power that was his by right of his position as the Sorcerer Supreme.

The Avengers, even Thor and Loki, were flabbergasted. They had known that someone called a 'Master of the Mystic Arts' had to be powerful, let alone the person carrying the title of Sorcerer Supreme, but this was not something they could have imagined. After hearing just how strong the defenses around the dragon egg were and after seeing even Thor and Carol and _Vision _powerless in the face of them, to see Strange seemingly tear through them as though they didn't even exist ... And to see this rage ... It didn't fit their image of the sorcerer that liked to hang around Tony. It was like he was a completely different person, as if something had snapped and Strange had decided _to hell with it_ and was just _done_.

Still, this outburst of power unnerved them.

Nebula was perhaps the least surprised. She'd, after all, seen this man stand up to the Mad Titan and fight him with four Infinity Stones in the Gauntlet and Thanos had still not taken him down easily. Now, the blue cyborg had to wonder whether the man had thrown that battle because it was necessary to ultimately defeat her 'father' and he was only _now _showing the true extent of his strength and power. She wasn't even surprised that it happened only after Tony's death. The only reason Nebula wasn't participating in the carnage was because Vision was holding her back and she wanted to stab him since she knew he couldn't turn intangible anymore but the thought _hurt_. He was, after all, one of the few things that remained of the first person who accepted her right off the bat. It had taken ... _years _for Gamora to look at her and see more than Thanos' eager assassin and soldier, more than a killer. Tony Stark had known Nebula for barely a day before he decided to draw her into his circle.

Losing him felt as bad as losing Gamora and perhaps even worse in some ways, for all her memories with Tony were only good ones if you excuse the first few ones where she was either acting as his bodyguard or trying to keep him alive. And even those were more uncomfortable for how they made her feel vulnerable to have become attached rather than because they were bad.

And now her last memory will be of Tony willingly falling to his death and she'll never understand why.

All she knew was that if Strange didn't kill Red Skull, _she _will.

Red Skull, himself, was cowering behind some of the rubble caused by the fight between the two sorcerers. Or, to be more precise, the rampage of the Sorcerer Supreme's power while Mordo tried to fend him off enough to survive. The Supreme Commander of HYDRA cursed himself for ever having made an alliance with the suicidal fool as he heard Mordo continue taunting Strange, as if the man wasn't angry _enough _as it was! Mordo obviously had a few screws loose and Schmidt admitted he must have been out of his mind to team up with him. He had been the warden of the Soul Stone for decades, for fuck's sake! He'd gotten a good peek into almost every soul in existence! He'd seen Doctor Stephen Vincent Strange's near obsession with keeping Dr Anthony Edward Stark alive! It would have been a complication, sure, but he had been aiming on simply severely injuring the genius engineer so Strange would abandon everything else and tend to the man he loved. He had not meant to push Stark into jumping into a place from which there was no return! He should have known to pick a different opponent, but Stark had kept coming at him and he had lost himself in battle and his own curiosity about the man that the universe kept hidden even from the glimpse of the Soul Stone and its warden.

Suddenly, there was a bright light from one of the walls, the surprise of seeing a whole new door appear out of virtually nowhere making everyone stop and face the possible new threat, guns and weapons and spells at the ready as they expected possibly another elemental spirit to appear as a guardian, only for more than one jaw to drop when the light died down and Tony Stark himself climb up what appeared to be a set of stairs with something bundled up in his hands. The should-be-dead man stopped in his tracks when he saw them all staring at him, took in the scene he had walked in on and gave an awkward wave.

"Hey, guys."


	11. Chapter 11

**Show Yourself Into The Unknown**

**Summary: The one where Thanos is dead, Tony has weird dreams instead of nightmares, the Avengers watch dubious Disney movies and mystical creatures are more than real. Oh, and the Cloak totally ships it.**

"Tony?" Said man looked over at the sound of his name, giving a small smile to a disbelieving looking Stephen who seems to have been wrecking havoc and destruction in his absence if the scene around them and Elsa's earlier words were anything to go by. Seems she wasn't exaggerating, as Tony had known she wouldn't be. He knew his friend well enough by now to know what to expect, though the amount of magic he'd managed to summon was impressive.

"Hey, Merlin. I see you've been busy."

"Tones!" Rhodey shouted from where he and everyone else seemed to be hiding between the sorcerers and the Asgardians so as not to get caught up in whatever it is that had been taking place. "Tony! You son of a bitch, don't _do _that to me! I'll get a heart attack one of these days!"

"_You_!?" The wicked witch of the west that had been fighting Strange exclaimed, looking at Tony as though he were something unnatural and vile. Elsa twitched in his grip and he had to scratch discretely under her chin to keep her from possibly tearing the man apart. That was out of their jurisdiction and in Stephen's. What happened to Mordo was not for them to decide. Besides, they were surrounded by the enemy and he'd rather not have her so exposed when she was still so small and only minutes old and vulnerable. "How are you _alive_?! The freezing temperatures should have killed you in seconds!"

Tony shrugged, a smirk tugging on his lips. "I guess the cold never bothered me anyway."

_'As I have promised, my Ib.'_ Tony actually almost jumped at more the implication behind those words than still hearing Elsa's voice in his head. That, he was used to, even though she now had a voice to speak in the real world. The implication, though ... He remembered the exact moment that promise had been made. He had always thought the turn of lyrics in the song strange but he guessed he should have caught on to the truth and meaning behind them sooner. He _had_ been surprisingly well with the cold, after all. He'll have to ask Elsa about that later, when they have the proper time to discuss it all. For now, he had other things to worry about. Like the reaction of his 'friends' and his friends.

"Now's not the time to play coy, Stark," Barton snapped from where he was hiding behind Loki. "If you had a way to survive entering the Well, you could have told us!"

"I thought you agreed you won't hide the updates you make to your suits, Tony."

Elsa gagged at Rogers' disappointed tone, finally drawing attention to herself and Tony tried not to smirk, he really did, but the dropped jaws were a bit too pleasing to see for him to control himself. The surprise and incredulity was expected, really. He knows people's opinion of himself a little too well. To learn that he could be _worthy_ of a dragon ... He could understand why their minds might be blown. He wasn't even offended at this point. He'd been just as surprised himself.

"That's not possible," Mordo whispered to himself but the room was so quiet that everyone heard him as though he had shouted it at the top of his lungs. And as if they were showing their disagreement, the elements all stepped forwards and bowed as best as their forms allowed to the new dragon and summoner pair. Elsa took it with grace, apparently expecting such treatment, though Tony himself felt a little uncomfortable. For all that Starks might as well be, with their prestige, influence and privileges, they were not royalty. He hopes he doesn't have to get used to the elements themselves and other forces of nature and magic bowing and kneeling in front of him. It had taken years to get his ego under control, after all.

"Yes, well, it apparently is so I suggest you get used to it." That didn't mean he wouldn't capitalize on the opportunity to sass at other people.

"This is better than I thought," Red Skull suddenly exclaimed, ambling out into sight from whatever hide-hole he had been cowering in. "It all finally makes sense! I should have seen this coming. I should have realized it was _you_ all along! Rare few souls were exempt to the all-seeing eyes of the Soul Stone's warden and yet your's I could never see! The only way to protect one from the Soul Stone's reach is through being bonded to a dragon! This is a favor the universe has done upon us, my brethren! We have both dragon and its summoner at hand!" The Nazi turned to his men, pointing a finger at Tony and Elsa. "Seize them!"

"Oh, please," Elsa muttered under her breath when the idiot agents, or a good number of them at least, moved forwards to follow the order immediately. Tony braced himself, a hand slowly inching towards his housing unit and bracing for a fight when Elsa opened her mouth and something that looked like blue flames burst from her jaws. Only the fire didn't burn. The HYDRA agents struck by it were immediately encased in ice within seconds, looking like frighteningly, horrifyingly accurate and realistic ice statues done by the hands of the best master artist in the world. The remaining seemed to have more brain cells as they turned on their heels and ran back the way they had come in. Unfortunately for them, the elements immediately ran after them and their screams echoed off of the walls as the guardians of the temple took care of them with ease now that their numbers were no longer increasing or replacing downed soldiers. From the sounds of it, the agents hadn't even tried to fight, their strongest instinct being to flee that they had apparently forgotten they had a means to at least put up a fight. It was over in seconds.

"I thought dragons breathe fire," Barnes could be heard commenting to someone, but he went ignored, everyone a little too distracted by the sight in front of them, the display of power from the young, just hatched dragon. With one breath, she had frozen them all and she was_ so small_. It brought into focus just how dangerous dragons were and why everyone had been making such a big fuss about them being the first to reach both dragon and the hatcher given the power they possessed.

The fear was almost palpable in the air.

Tony did not feel it.

Elsa would never hurt him.

The others were fair game, if she ever went after them. They wouldn't even be able to do anything to stop her. The true extent of her potential power was only now becoming recognizable and they could only make vague guesses as to its limits.

"So you show your true colors." Stark turned his attention to Mordo even as he made sure not to lose awareness of Schmidt on his other side. His teammates seemed to be frozen in place - metaphorically, thankfully - probably from the shock of it all so it would seem it was up to him and Elsa to get themselves out of here and out of this absurd situation. At least they had the larger elements as their backup, obviously waiting for a signal from either dragon or her Ib to act.

"I'm afraid I have no idea what you're blabbering about."

"That dragon cannot be even an hour old and you already have her killing. That speaks a great deal about your character, Stark," the green dressed sorcerer taunted as he started moving away from the spot Strange had cornered him in before Tony had arrived and seemingly shortsircuited the former neurosurgeon's brain. The irony in that didn't escape Tony and Elsa snorted at his thoughts.

"Still not sure what you're aiming at. She has her own free will. If she's decided to deal with them in the way she has, that's her business. I don't control her. She's not a pet. She's not an attack dog."

"She is yours to command."

"Excuse me, how many dragons and their summoners do you know to be an expert on the subject? 'Cause I just met her entire race's souls and I _am _one so I think I know at least a little bit more about it than you." There was some spluttering from his teammates and murmurs from the Northuldra warriors gathered with them.

"You are a disgrace to a once honorable line," Mordo says with disgust and sorrow and Elsa snarls, the sound far louder and more ragged than one would guess judging from her soft, angelic voice, small size and pretty appearance.

"Careful how you continue, Karl Mordo. Dragons do not take insults against their own very well."

"I fear not a little cold," was the challenging reply and then Mordo charged.

Elsa's eyes narrowed at the threat. "Very well." Even Tony blenched a little as this time, when Elsa opened her mouth, raging, red, orange and yellow flames poured out and devoured the sorcerer in seconds.

("I think I prefer the ice," a disturbed Winter Soldier can be just barely heard over the roaring flames in the background.)

Only the beginnings of a scream made it to their ears before there was nothing left of Mordo before he could get more than a few feet away from the newly bonded pair. The stench of burned skin and bones still reached their noses even as the wind element returned from where it had been dealing with HYDRA agents and swept it away. The young dragon huffed in disgust before returning to snuggling against Tony, warbling an apology. "I know you said it is not up to us to decide on his fate, but I will not allow anyone to come at my Ib with the clear threat to your safety as their intentions." She threw a pointed look at Red Skull and the red skinned man wisely backed off, hands raised in the air in surrender, eventually kneeling on the ground and letting himself be secured by the rock and ice giants, recognizing that he had been defeated.

"Tony!" Rhodey, Carol, Stephen and Hope called out, running over towards him with Nebula walking calmly behind them but the tension in her frame spoke of how she was only barely restraining herself from losing her cool in the face of finally seeing him once again alive. All five of them, and the approaching Vision, stopped, hesitating, just a meter from him, eyeing Elsa in his arms. His dragon snorted at them, clambering up to his shoulders and leaving him free for hugs, waving her tail where it was draped down one shoulder in amusement.

"You are not unwelcome unless you wish to stab him in the back."

At once, he was engulfed in crushing hugs, Nebula's and Vision's hands reaching for his own from beyond the apparently more touchier members of his 'welcome back from the dead' party. Tony chuckled and rested his head against Stephen's chest, letting shaky hands place against his Arc Reactor and try to feel for a heartbeat hidden beneath while leaning most of his weight on a shaking with repressed sobs and tears Rhodey.

"Shit, you can't do this to me anymore, man! I'm not as young as I used to be!"

"Warn us next time, shellhead!" Carol insisted, whacking him gently over the head.

"I'm telling Pepper on you." He actually shivered at Hopes threat, but mostly just enjoyed the embrace, squeezing Nebula's hand when her hand twitched. He met her eyes and she seemed to relax when she saw that he appeared fine and hid no pain. When he then met Vision's eyes, he was met with a confused frown.

_'He cannot feel your mind as I am protecting it, even with direct contact to counter the blocks placed on the Temple,'_ Elsa informed him as a mere whisper in his mind, apparently content to let him have a moment with his friends, with people he considered family and were precious to him. _'He is confused but trusts you to explain at your own time. He shall be fine. Concentrate on your sorcerer. He seems rather shaken.'_

Which seemed to be an understatement, all things considered. Stephen looked wrecked and he seemed unwilling to speak at all, as if afraid that saying anything might break the illusion that Tony was really alive. The genius felt his heart skip a beat and he moved a little from Rhodey so that he leaned on Stephen. The former doctor seemed to take a shuddering breath at just the feel of his skin, still warm with life, before the man seemed to deflate and rather suddenly, he tipped to the side. Had it not been for all the people surrounding Tony, the man would have likely fallen and cracked his skull on the rock floor, spilling his brilliant brains out. As it was, Vision caught him at just the right moment to stop his fall.

That didn't stop Tony's panic mode from activating. "FRIDAY, scan him!"

"He's fine," Wong said from beyond the little circle his friends had created, walking over to check on his fellow sorcerer himself regardless of his own surety of his words. "He's likely just finally managed to knock himself out from exhaustion. I have never before seen any sorcerer, no matter their age or their origin, manage to break through the wards and protections the likes of which are placed over this place. I'd be more surprised if he wasn't experiencing a magic burnout."

_'In other words, he's exhausted himself to the point that he will likely need a couple of days of rest to be able to function properly again,'_ Elsa explained to him and Tony looked uncertainly between her earnest eyes and Stephen's slack features. _'Relax, my Ib. He is healthy. He just needs rest and plenty of it.'_ She paused. _'As do you. I believe I have been interfering with your sleep long enough. Worry not, for I will guard your peace from nightmares so you may catch your rest.'_

"Yeah, I'm not going to have a nap right here," he replied, gesturing at Stephen distractedly. "We already have one sleeping beauty to take care of."

"Uh, Tony?"

"Hm?"

Rhodey was staring at him in a very weird fashion, which really said something since the man had seen him in all sorts of situations in their lives since they've met and became friends at MIT. Though, fair, neither of them had thought there would ever be a weirder situation than the whole Infinity Gauntlet debacle. "Please tell me you're talking to FRIDAY?"

"Uh, no. I was talking to Elsa." When he, Carol, Hope, Wong, Vision and Nebula gave him a plethora of weird looks, some concerned, others thoughtful, he gestured at the dragon draped over his shoulders like a scarf. "The dragon? We have a mental connection."

"None of our available books mention anything about dragons forming mental bonds with their summoners," Wong pointed out with a frown and Tony snorted.

"Yeah, well, did the writers of said books ever even _see _a dragon, let alone talk to one?" He challenged and Wong met it with a narrowing of his eyes, apparently accepting it and not backing down at the reasonable question, all things considered.

"They might have." And an equally reasonable answer, unfortunately.

Elsa came to his rescue again. This time, though, she spoke for all to hear, only the second time she had used her voice out loud for anyone but Tony. "Dragons would not have mentioned the depth of our bond to our 'summoners', as you call them, if some had indeed talked with the authors. It is a private and nearly sacred thing to my kind." There was a veiled warning there, one Rhodey met with raised hands in surrender and a gentle tone.

"Hey, I'm all okay with that as long as my best friend and brother in all but blood hadn't gone off the rails."

Dragon and hatcher both snorted at that, amused. "We ought to leave. Rest will do us all some good."

"Hold on. You can't expect us to just," Captain America floundered for the right words but remained determined in his stance that the matter is not to be dropped so easily. Tony wondered if he could sock the man a good one and not have to face to consequences for it. He wasn't sure anyone would want to piss off a dragon that had just frozen a whole bunch of people and burned a powerful sorcerer to no more than a crisp. "Let this go! You owe us an explanation!"

"Actually," Loki surprised them all when he pipped up, sauntering over to inspect the dragon from close up with something like awe and reverence in his red eyes. Thor was not far behind him, fascination in his own gaze as it fell on the baby dragon. Remembering what the two had said about how Asgardians had ultimately treated Elsa's kin, Tony had to fight the urge to shield her with his body and Elsa, from the way she had tensed on her perch, seemed to be fighting the instinct to freeze or burn the two Asgardians as well. "As I recall, friend Stark owes you nothing of the sort. And if memory serves me right - which it does - dragons and their summoners have no obligation to share their business with outsiders. I am sure it was heavily implied, if not outright stated, in one of our meetings before we all embarked on this endeavor. Not to mention that there is no things left to _explain_, as it has been made clear that the universe itself creates these bonds. Friend Stark had nothing to do with being born as he is."

Wanda looked ready to make a snide comment regarding that, probably something vicious and snide, but the Northuldra beat her to it by starting to sing the very same song they had sang just that morning to greet the new day and the dragon hatcher resting in one of their beds, along with the same clapping and slamming of weapons against the stone floor. The only difference this time was that the magic of the temple itself as well as the elements, currently present and just returned, joined in, making the place vibrate with amounts of energy that had only been felt before in the presence of the Infinity Stones. The circle around Tony opened when Aidna approached and placed her spear between them with an open invitation for him to grab hold of it with her. Rhodey jumped out of the way when the fire tiger bound its way over to rub up against Tony's side and Carol made an interesting noise when the wind snake mussed up her hair. Nebula eyed the water horse with suspicion but she and Vision eventually made way for the golems and took Schmidt off of their hands as they realized this was an important moment, or something like it, an initiation perhaps.

With them all standing behind Tony and the Northuldra, Wong, Thor, Loki and a propped up, still unconscious Stephen came to stand behind Aidna, their hands on each others' shoulders until they made a connecting web just as the elements did with Tony and Elsa behind them, Stark felt the energies shift and embrace him and his little dragon.

_'It is the right of passage,'_ she murmurs in his mind, voice soothing and a purr in his words as though she were a pleased cat. _'A bridge formed between magic and reality, between energy and matter, between them and nature and we are the ones who must build it, maintain it and protect it. Accept them, Tony. We shall guide them into a better world.'_

_'Together,'_ he thinks back at her and confidently takes a good, strong hold of the spear offered to him, his hands gripping in between Aidna's so they hold the weapon together as equals.

A moment as magic gathers, a pulse ...

The Temple alights.


	12. Chapter 12

**Show Yourself Into The Unknown**

**Summary: The one where Thanos is dead, Tony has weird dreams instead of nightmares, the Avengers watch dubious Disney movies and mystical creatures are more than real. Oh, and the Cloak totally ships it.**

"Can I be the first to say that I'm just glad that's over? Because I'm saying it," Rhodes says in a mock complaining but genuinely tired voice as they watch the celebrations taking place in the Northuldra's village for their successful return and to celebrate the new era Tony and Elsa had begun. Said summoner and dragon were sitting with the former's best friend, eating their platefuls of the feast the Sami had been preparing since they had left this morning in honor of the newly bonded pair of magic wardens, eating and preparing themselves for the new lives they are about to undertake once they return to the US.

"You and me both. I'm glad for Elsa with every atom of my being but this had all been unnecessarily stressful," Tony agreed, munching on some meat he was pretty sure was reindeer. Or stag. He had never tried it before and if it turned out to be reindeer, he apologized to Sven in his mind because he was unsure if he will ever be able to look at the cartoon reindeer the same way again. It feels like a violation.

"You know, that name sounds familiar but I can't put my finger on it where I had heard it before," Rhodey mused, frowning when Tony and Elsa snickered. The genius couldn't help but wonder at the Colonel's reaction if he were to find out he'd accidentally named possibly the strongest creature in existence after a Disney princess. It was tempting to find out right now but he figured the reaction will be even better if he plays the waiting game. Seeing how popular Frozen 2 was at the moment, Rhodey's bound to make the connection sooner or later. Stark was more than patient enough to milk all his entertainment out of this one that he can get. "Still, it's a really pretty name."

"Pretty name for a pretty dragon," Tony shrugged, enjoying the way Elsa purred at his compliment. "You know, she's been in my dreams for months. I'm just glad we're finally able to be together like this."

"She the reason you had such a weird sleeping pattern?" His friend asks knowingly and Tony nods. "Well, I'm just glad that's sorted out, though I enjoyed not having to worry about your insomnia seasons. Especially since I had seriously thought that whole shit with Thanos would fuck you up. It did everyone else."

"I would not allow my Ib to be plague by such nightmares when he is the reason the world is in balance," Elsa assures the pilot of War Machine and he considers her for a moment before nodding approvingly. They strike up a casual chat, Rhodey and occasionally Tony asking Elsa all sorts of questions as the engineer ran a hand over her smooth scales/feathers/hairs/whatever they were, just enjoying the peace and the joy of the moment. Tony was just glad that two so important people in his life - because the connection affected him as much as it did Elsa and he would be a liar to deny his affection towards her, even if they only knew each other a true handful of days; it _felt_ like an eternity and that's all that mattered. With their souls bound the way they were, it would be weird if they weren't so attached already - were getting along, though he shouldn't and wasn't surprised. The both of them just wanted him to be safe, happy and healthy. They'll probably team up more than once to get him to manage regular sleeping and working hours and a normal eating habit.

He let them talk, mind wandering from him as he looked around the big square that the Northuldra had decided to use for this little celebratory feast. It was all traditionally set up, colorful and cheerful with lots of food and alcohol that he felt guilty for wasting these people's food supplies when he was a billionaire. He reasoned he can always give them financial help, though he figured they wouldn't accept it if they knew it was coming from him since he was a very big deal as the first dragon hatcher in generations upon generations. He'll just make an anonymous donation when he gets back home and settles Elsa in.

(He tries not to overthink the logistics behind raising a baby dragon too much.)

The Avengers were torn on how to react to the celebration. Half of them were ill at ease with having anything to celebrate or sticking around any longer in the harsher, colder climate while the other half was enthusiastic. Of course, there were Vision and Nebula, who were curious and stoic respectively, but they were their own category in most other things anyway, so that wasn't anything weird. Besides, Wong and Aidna both had been of the opinion it would be for the best to let Stephen get his magical equilibrium back before they stuff him through a portal to take him back home. Loki had agreed, saying it would only hinder his recovery rate if he were to just be returned to the Sanctum where there was a completely different flow of magic, especially after spending so much time in an area filled with the magic kind, which was so different than any other type of magic to be found elsewhere. Stephen had nearly entirely drained himself and he needed his strength to return to him gradually lest his natural energies become destabilized, something none of the sorcerers would recommend.

Stark had no problem with staying a bit longer.

Rogers wanted them back home _yesterday_ so he can all but tattletale on Tony for ending up being the summoner they had been worrying about.

Tony couldn't wait to see Fury's and Ross' reaction when they find out _he_ was quite possibly the last dragon summoner in the multiverse. They, as well as many others, were still very much uncomfortable with the knowledge that he had survived something that most _Asgardians_ probably wouldn't, not counting the freak of nature Thor and whatever 'Odinforce' he inherited from his daddy when he became the King of Asgard. Though Fury will probably just be relieved it was one of his own that had ended up with the power Loki, Stephen and Wong had went to great lengths to describe as unmatched. He at least knows Tony is ready to do anything to keep the world, the _universe_ \- and now so much more - safe.

Rogers and his fellow rouges will never see it that way. All they will see is Tony Stark handed another dangerous 'toy' that should seriously not be in his hands and that they think was better off in Steve's care and that pisses him off. Elsa had chosen _him_, the _universe_, the _multiverse_, _magic itself_ had chosen _him_ to be paired with his beautiful dragon. He will fight tooth and nail and nanite anyone who dares try and take her from him.

Elsa wasn't the only dangerous one in their pair.

"Tony? A word, please?" The still somewhat timid voice of Bruce Banner brings him back out of his thoughts and Tony turns his attention to his science bro. Bruce looks nervous, wringing his hands together and he keeps shooting uncertain looks at Elsa. It's not that the two of them haven't met already - he had introduced her with Lang, Valkyrie and him as soon as they had exited the Temple with a bit of Elsa's fire's help as the Temple of Ahtohallan was still very much under protection from magic or special abilities as it housed more than just a dragon egg - and he hadn't seemed this uncomfortable when Elsa had first given him a throughout, considering once-over.

The slight guilt in his eyes and the way Valkyrie was glaring at the rouges told Tony everything he needed to know. "Did they send you to try and guilt trip me with Ultron?"

The other scientist winced but he seemed relieved he wouldn't have to decide which side to lie to or try to fool with placating words. Elsa still made a displeased rumble in her throat and Tony had to agree with her. Bruce needed to grow a spine. "They seem to be under the impression that you'd listen to me if I were to try and convince you to hand over the dragon - Elsa, right? - to be trained by the Avengers as a group."

Both dragon and human snarled in a beastly manner, startling the poor man and drawing some attention to themselves. "Elsa is not a _dog_. If they want to train something, they can train Rogers. He'd already a dancing monkey on heels. I'm sure they can teach him a few new tricks that might actually make him seem smart in this day and age." He promptly stands up, taking his and Elsa's bowls and marching over to the three very terrifying women he had somehow befriended. Valkyrie, Hope and Carol easily accepted him and Elsa,cooing or marveling at how cute yet incredibly strong she was for someone so small. He just let them as he glared at Bruce and the rouges before deciding they're not worth the energy and the blood pressure problems.

Instead, he seeks out Thor and Loki in the crowd. The Jotun had transformed back to his more human/Asgardian guise as soon as his magic was free and was now showing a flock of children tricks one usually wouldn't learn from Earth sorcerers. Thor, on the other hand, was drinking mead with the warriors of the Northuldra tribe and sharing battle stories.

Lang and Barnes were a few tables away from them, staring at some dish or another and seemingly trying to guess what was what and which dish had which seasonings. Nebula was being followed around by a reindeer and was trying to lose it while Vision was following _them_ with a baby reindeer tugging on his cape and letting itself be dragged around in the snow, obviously delighted. Tony wondered if the android even felt the tugging on his yellow cape or not. Maximoff kept shooting glances at him but Vision didn't even seem to notice. Tony still wasn't sure what to make of Vision's fascination with Nebula but he was glad that the android had finally ditched Maximoff. The Sokovian woman was toxic.

Wong and Aidna were sitting off to the side and talking about something among themselves and he couldn't see Migil anywhere but the young man had been talking to a woman about his age the last time he'd caught a glimpse of him. It wouldn't be unreasonable he had a girl he liked or dated. Tony wished him the best of luck in his pursuits.

The rouges were none of his concern, though he knows Rogers and Romanov had tried to come over and speak with him. Elsa's 'burps' of fire and smoke have kept them at bay so far so it was no wonder they sent over Bruce. Barton would only piss him off and Wilson apparently had a good head on his shoulders, despite his choice in friends, as he didn't want to have anything to do with convincing a man that had already blasted him in the chest once to give up a creature they had been repeatedly told was now practically bonded to the very essence of his soul.

He'd wondered out loud to Rhodey that Maximoff hadn't been sent to try out her hand against him, only to be treated to a retelling of how Stephen, the only one who was absent as he was still asleep, had nearly ripped her apart when Tony had jumped into the Well.

He really had some awesome friends and Elsa was a perfect addition to his ever growing family.

_'I wonder how meeting Peter and Harley will go?'_ It was sure to be epic and something he will have to get FRIDAY to record and save for darker days. Still, for now he focused on the conversation Valkyrie struck up purposefully having nothing to do with the dragon in his arms, no doubt well aware of what the rouges had roped Banner into doing, which allowed them both to relax for a little bit. Life won't be going as smoothly once they get back to the states and reality catches up to them both of just what living together might imply for them both. _'Pepper will have an aneurysm.'_

"Tony?!" The call of his name was preluded only by a sharp bang of the cabin door where they had put Stephen while he regained his magical equilibrium, the noise startling quite a bit of people. Most of the sorcerers gaped at their Sorcerer Supreme as no one had been expecting the man to wake up before at least tomorrow evening, but it would seem Strange was out to exceed expectations today.

The Cloak of Levitation was the first to spot him and quickly floated its master over to their group before startling them all when it hugged him while still remaining on Stephen's shoulder. Elsa squeaked in protest when this brought the two men chest to chest, nearly crushing her in the process, before she was glaring at the sentient magical fabric like she wanted to burn it. The two men also yelped in surprise but knew better than to attempt to fight the stubborn cloth. It was neither the first nor it will be the last time the Cloak acted like this. It was like a puppy, honestly.

"You okay there, Doctor Wizard? You really shouldn't be out of bed yet."

"I- Yes, I'm fine. A bit dizzy but perfectly fine," the former neurosurgeon sounded like it, so Tony didn't make too big of a fuss. He has a feeling Elsa would have warned him if the other was lying and indeed near collapsing again. "You? Are you okay?"

"I'm not the one who had essentially gone from zero to a hundred in terms of magic," the engineer felt the need to point out. The sorcerer just shrugged before his eyes settled on the dragon that clambered back onto Tony's shoulder, blue-gray-green eyes meeting icy blue-pinkish-purple. The Sorcerer Supreme dipped his head to the hatchling, showing as much respect as he could given their position. It only then occurred to Tony that he had never really properly introduced Elsa to anyone. They overheard her name and that was it. Straightening his back with the same pride he felt and showed for his bots and AIs, he tilted his head in Elsa's direction with a gentle smile. "Stephen, I'd like to officially introduce you to Elsa of Ahtohallan, my dragon soulmate."

The sorcerer arched an eyebrow, obviously about to ask about that little tidbit when Wong snapped his name. They both turned to see the stout Asian man making his way towards them, a scary scowl on his face. Stephen blenched and the Cloak actually let them go. Tony ended up having to steady the taller man with the abruptness of the action. By the time Wong made it through the snow, though, the former neurosurgeon had steadied himself and could stand up properly on his own. Wong sent his friend a severe look and Stephen actually quelled under the stare. "You should be resting."

"I'm fine, Wong. See? No need to make a fuss."

"You've done what has been thought to be _impossible_ for centuries, Strange! The amount of magic you called upon and the strain you put your body through ... Anyone else would be _dead_ right now!" They both flinched at that, both at the tone and the words, and the Cloak wrapped itself tighter around its master. "You shouldn't tire yourself out after that. Lay down, get yourself back into balance. Don't astral project for a few days and _sleep_ for once."

"I really do feel fine, though," the other man insisted. "Here, you can check me over yourself."

"He speaks the truth," Elsa interrupted before either of them could continue their little argument. They both turned towards the dragon and Wong immediately fell into a bow. Elsa nodded at him before continuing what she was saying, eyes on Stephen. "He is tired still but he is in balance. It is impressive how quickly he's managed to recover from the feat he has pulled. A worthy Sorcerer Supreme to govern over magic. Though I do agree you should rest more," she said when Stephen looked ready to preen. "You are lucky to be so in tune with magic that you avoided most of the backlash you should have suffered from straining against dragon-made blocking seals and protection wards."

"And I can do that from the Sanctum in New York," he insisted and Tony snorted.

"Wow, the proverb is true. Doctors really _are_ the worst patients." He thought about it before carefully shrugging with his free shoulder, doing it so as not to disturb Elsa. "Then again, I have no place to talk. Pepper has nearly gone gray several times over."

"Hey, don't forget me and my suffering!" Rhodey announced himself before throwing an arm around Tony's shoulder. Elsa gave an offended squawk and he let go, raising his hands in surrender. The women watching the whole exchange were just smirking, Valkyrie even going as far as to give them a salute with her drink. "Sorry. Anyway, this all comes as a relief, you know. The whole dragon-dragon summoner thing."

"Dare I ask how? Or why?"

"With Elsa's life being essential for the universe and connected and dependent on _yours_," the Colonel said with a great deal of smugness. "You finally have to stop with your unhealthy lifestyle and heroic, suicidal self-sacrificing tendencies. Relaxed and zero percent worried life, here I come!"

Tony wanted to protest, to complain and argue, but just the _thought_ of his actions in any way negatively affecting Elsa had his heart dropping to his feet and his stomach churning in a sickening way that almost made him want to vomit. That's right. It had completely slipped his mind that while _he_ may survive Elsa, _she_ will never survive _him_. And if she dies, Tony wasn't even sure if he'll care that the world is ending around him. He'll be an empty shell because Elsa had placed _her life_ in his hands, had trusted him with the fate of reality like no one else had or would and he would have let her down.

"Oh my god, I need to cut back on _coffee_!"

If anything good came from this, at least Stephen laughed and finally relaxed, sure now that Tony won't just slip away. In fact, he seemed rather pleased and supporting of this turn of events, the traitor that he is.

Tony did not appreciate the thought of cutting back on coffee.

(He will do it anyways.)


	13. Chapter 13

**Show Yourself Into The Unknown**

**Summary: The one where Thanos is dead, Tony has weird dreams instead of nightmares, the Avengers watch dubious Disney movies and mystical creatures are more than real. Oh, and the Cloak totally ships it.**

Two days later, when they were all back in the US and had settled back into old or started new routines found Tony and Elsa all but bickering over which movie they should watch when Peter walked in, casual and energetic and all around happy to be around his mentor as he usually was. In all the excitement of introducing Elsa to Pepper and Happy, explaining how the whole thing had happened, assuring his friends that he was _fine_ and then rearranging things in his general living space to make room for his new companion and placing new protocols with FRIDAY regarding her new magical sibling, Tony had honestly forgotten to update the teen on the whole crazy situation.

So, really, it was no surprise at all when Peter froze upon walking into his living room and seeing the ethereal Elsa perched on the comfiest, cushiest pillow money could buy that Tony had immediately procured for her, bantering back and forth with the one and only Iron Man regarding each other's questionable tastes in movies. _Disney_ movies, to be precise. It was not a scene one would usually expect from Mr Tony I-don't-like-or-trust-magic-or-anything-magical-keep-it-away-from-me-damn-it Stark, but Peter, it would seem, was used to all types of crazy by now that came with being not only a superhero and an Avenger, but also being in any way associated with Tony Stark. So Peter took it in stride and freaked out only a little.

"Oh my god, Mr Stark! Is that a real, live dragon!? Or did you make it? Like, with nanites and stuff, like your armor. Because that would be so cool too but it would be even more epic if it was an _actual_ dragon! Like, you know, breathing fire, hoarding gold, flying and guarding the secrets of wisdom. But if you made it then that's awesome, too! Did Doctor Strange see it? Did _Thor_ see it? Can it control the elements? Does it have magic? Is it some sort of alien tech? Did Nebula help you make it? Is this why you've been unavailable the whole week?! I came around a few days ago but FRIDAY told me you guys were all busy so I went and hung out with Ned instead and he was my guy in the chair for taking down these robbers in the bank down the street from my school and he said you guys were probably off saving the world again but FRIDAY said you were just busy and that it was nothing urgent but then I went to Doctor Strange and he wasn't in the Sanctum, either and the wizards there told me he's with the Avengers and then I started fearing that something urgent _did_ come up and the last time it did, we ended up in space so I got worried and called Ms Potts but she didn't know where you where, either so I called Mr Director Fury and he-"

"Whoa, easy there, Pete! Breathe! Jesus, kid, I thought your superpower was super strength, not super _tongue_." He waited until a sheepish Spider-Man finally shut up and mumbled an apology he waved off. "Anyway, so yes, this _is_ a dragon and no, I didn't make her - and yes, it's a she - though I _did_ hatch her from her egg. That what we've been occupied with. Turns out dragons are real and the multiverse's continued existence depends on them but they're a near extinct race. This little lady is the only one we currently know of. Yes, she breathes fire, though she has some freezing powers, too, and she'll be able to fly when she gets a bit stronger and yes, she does indeed hold the secrets of wisdom and the universe despite being only days old - yes, you _are_ only days old. Being half aware inside of an egg doesn't count since that was existence, not life. That aside, yes, Stephen and Thor saw her - they were there we we climbed out of the Well. Don't know about gold hoarding, she's only been here for two days. Good for you for catching the bank robbers, though I hope you were safe. And don't talk to Fury. You're staying the friendly neighborhood Spider-Man until you're twenty one. No exceptions. Well, except if the world is ending. You can help out if that's the case. Now come meet Elsa and help us pick out a movie to watch."

He was well aware that there were several Avengers in the kitchen adjourned to the big living room on the common floor. He had chosen to settle here for the sole reason of Peter coming over. He wanted the kid to hear about Elsa from him first before the former rouges could make a big drama out of it. It's not _his_ fault Elsa was wiser than him and wanted nothing to do with a bunch of dickheads. They should have acted like more decent human beings to her summoner before they realized he was her summoner. Preferably, though, he would have liked it much more if he and Pete were alone when he introduced the two. He looked at Peter and Harley like they were his own kids and Elsa had a whole new category for herself. Their ideal meeting would have been without the prying, judgmental eyes of the people who had stabbed him in the back.

"Elsa?" Peter repeated with wonder, took a good, long look at her before something shifted in his eyes. He came closer and leaned down to be practically eye level with her. Stealing one last glance at Tony, he gave a toothy, sheepish smile. "Do you wanna build a snow man?

Come on, let's go and play

I never see you anymore

Come out the door

It's like you've gone away!"

Tony couldn't help it. He laughed, open and delighted, especially when Elsa perked up in interest and her own delight. "Frozen it is!"

"Can I join?" Peter asked and all but vibrated out of his own skin in excitement when Elsa nodded frantically. Then he was floored when she continued the song, apparently stunned by her voice.

"We used to be best buddies

But now we're not

What am I gonna do?

Do you wanna build a snow man?

It doesn't have to be a snowman.

Okay, bye."

And just because he loved the stunned, incredulous expressions everyone was sporting, the genius cleared his throat. "Elsa, please I know you're in there!

People are asking where you've been

They say 'have courage' and I'm trying to

I'm right out here for you

Just let me in."

"We only have each other," Elsa interjected into their chopped up version of the song, not that any of them cared.

"It's just you and me," Tony sang back, running a hand across her back and delighting in the way she shivered against his hand.

"What are we gonna do?" Peter all but plopped down on the free space on the couch, looking way too awed at the singing dragon. Tony still preferred the flabbergasted faces the Avengers were making when they realized not only could he hold a tune but he also knew the lyrics of a Disney song by heart. He gestured to his fellow childish singers - not that _any_ of their voices were in any way childish or lacking; he should maybe recommend Peter to a records label, he'd be brilliant - to follow him into the last bit, a huge grin breaking out on his face as their voices melded together.

"Do you wanna build a snowman?

It don't have to be a snowman ..."

"Why not?" Elsa, as she was won to, interrupted the song as she pleased, a frown on her too cute face. Tony briefly wondered if he was biased and so he will find her cute even when she inevitably becomes as big as a house or if she really was far too cute for a being on whom the rest of existence depends and leans on.

"Can you actually do it like Elsa? Can we make _Olaf_?!"

"No." Tony might be a fan of Frozen and the eccentric, cute as a button sentient snowman from said movie but he puts his foot down at having to deal with what is essentially a frozen, magical Dum-E, damn it "Only normal snowmen allowed. Next thing I know, you'll be trying to get her to make a reindeer actually talk and naming it Sven!"

"She can do _that_?!"

"Not the point, kid," he said all-sufferingly, but a smile was playing at his lips. Damn, he can't remember the last time he had smiled this much. Just a couple of days with Elsa in his life and he was already much happier. He was full of love and contentedness and the knowledge that he will never be alone again, no matter what life may bring at him. He felt like he could _relax_. No wonder dragons wanted to have their Ib. No wonder their _souls_ are connected in the bonding process and that dragons _die_ if their summoner/hatcher dies. Tony wasn't sure if he'd actually survive Elsa's death. The grief and loss might do him in. If this was how life was _with_ Elsa, he never wants to go without ever again. "Though can you actually build a snowman like the other Elsa?"

In answer, the dragon only took a slightly deeper breath, held it for a moment and then blew it out. The moisture in the air froze, formed snowflakes and gathered them together until a mass started forming. It definitely took longer than in the movie but not two minutes later, a snowman almost identical to Olaf, save for the necessary accessories they ought to add on, stood in the Compound living room. Peter and Tony laughed in amazement, especially as it didn't start melting despite the exquisite heating systems of the property and Elsa preened under their happiness.

"As it is created by my magic, it will _never_ melt unless I will it to. And no, it's not sentient, my Ib, but we can always change that at a later date if you change your mind." Peter turned big, soulful, hopeful puppy dog eyes at him and Tony rolled his own.

"No." Funnily enough, Elsa pouted with him, too. "I can just imagine Pepper's reaction if she sees a living snowman running around the Compound. She'd have my head."

"So is this why you've been watching Disney movies over the last couple of months?" Peter asked as he slowly reached out as if to pet Elsa but waiting for her permission before touching her. Respectful and polite. And utterly adorably delighted when she allowed it. Gods - if such things even existed - but these two together were cuteness overdose! They might just be the death of him.

"Partially. Elsa's been giving me a weird sleeping schedule as of late before we finally met in one of my dreams. Since I never felt up to doing anything specific because I was so weirded out and tired, I decided to watch something to numb my brain into sleep. Turns out that I am instead now a Disney movie addict. Frozen and Frozen 2 are by far my favorites. Elsa just happened to agree with me."

There was a derisive snort from the kitchen where Barton, Wilson and Lang were getting coffee or tea or a snack. The sneer came from Barton and he had a disgusted look on his face when Tony sighed and deigned to look at him. "You seriously named a _dragon_ after a Disney princess?"

"A Disney _queen_," Barnes corrected with a smirk as he walked into the room, nodding at Tony and waving at his intern and ward.

Tony smirked himself, not willing to pass up the chance. "A Disney _goddess made flesh_."

If anything, Barton looked even more disgusted while Wilson adopted an exasperated expression. Lang, though, only chuckled. "Fitting, I guess. I mean, given her control over ice. And she _does_ have a pretty singing voice. Not to mention that the whole 'goddess made flesh' part actually fits her given what we know about dragons so far."

"You can't be _serious_ that you _agree_ with this, Tic Tac?" The incredulous Wilson asked with both eyebrows nearly touching his hairline. Lang shrugged, unbothered. At least the hero worship had abated after Hope joined the team. Lang actually thought with his head these days when he was making decisions.

"Why not? Elsa's as good a name as any and it's pretty fitting for someone like her. Besides, who gave _us_ a say in how Stark will name his dragon?"

"Seeing as we're meant to protect it together," Barton countered, completely ignoring the legitimate and sound argument Scott had presented in favor of letting his own feelings regarding Tony be the perfect judge of how things should happen. Tony rolled his eyes and prayed Ahtohallan - because he was never religious as he believed in what he can see and empirically experience but he _had_ seen Ahtohallan and he knows it's real so why not swear by that from now on? Sounds like a good gig. It will at least bug everyone out and sow confusion, which may give him an upper hand in arguments so he's definitely doing it - will grant him strength and patience to deal with these assholes. "We _should_ have agreed on what to name it _together_. As a _team_."

"Well, tough luck, bird brain, the honor of naming a dragon falls to its summoner and I'm Elsa's, so Elsa it is. Not that she _wants_ any other name, mind you, but that's really none of your business so buzz off."

"Besides, we didn't even _know_ Stark was the one who was going to hatch her," Barnes pointed out as he came and sat down in one of the armchairs, eyeing the non-sentient replica of Olaf with intrigue. "All we knew was that we had to help Doctor Strange find the egg and then protect it until the right person comes along. We had no way of knowing Stark was the one we were waiting for-"

"Because he didn't _tell_ us-"

"And he had no obligation to," Elsa snarled at Wilson, who immediately fell quiet, scared. Apparently he still remembered the ice and the fire, the power Elsa held despite her diminutive size. Barnes just continued as though neither of them had spoken.

"We had no reason to _believe_ it would be one of us. We thought we would be on the outskirts of the dragon's and it's summoner's life. Why the _hell_ should we get a say in their name?" He then shrugged, nodding towards Tony and Elsa. "Besides, the name fits and they're both happy with it. Not to mention that despite the summoner being an Avengers _doesn't_ suddenly give us privileges over the dragon. Elsa made it clear she doesn't like any of us - and for good reason. To try and force or impose our opinion on the matter on either of them won't endear us to her any further. We at least need her to trust us enough to let us have her back if she needs it. We won't achieve that by being dicks to her summoner. All it will do is getting our asses set on fire or frozen when she finally gets sick of our meddling. So just _drop it_."

"You trust Stark to-"

"I do," the Winter Soldier answered easily, giving Clint a cold, calculated, blank look that had once meant the Winter Soldier was in control. "Besides, no one tried to name _your_ kids."

"She's not a kid, she's a _monster_ of legend," bristled the archer, pissed, but he went stiff and still when Nebula's voice drifted from behind him.

"Are you talking about the Scarlet Witch? What has she done now and do I need to get my knives?" The second part was aimed at Tony as the blue cyborg made her way over towards the sitting launch, all deadly grace and confidence, not at all afraid to turn her back to the three in the kitchen as she walked past them. Tony knew damn well she had heard a better part of the last few exchanges before she had made her presence known. Whenever Tony wasn't alone, she hesitated just long enough to judge the situation before joining in so she would know how to respond and whether she needed her knives out _now_ or later. Not to mention that Stephen's and Tony's - and definitely Harley's trolling - sarcasm had rubbed off on her in the time she'd been on Earth and living with them. She was trying to aggravate Barton on purpose and it was working _beautifully_.

Nebula seated herself on the armchair closest to Tony and, as always, gave him a once-over to make sure he had not come to harm since they had last seen each other an hour ago. Tony would have rolled his eyes if he wasn't so touched by the gesture. Honestly, the ease with which he and Nebula connected was quite something. Then again, he had always been more comfortable around machines than around people. Nebula was just halfway in between and she wasn't from Earth, either, which probably helped more than people could realize. Sure, Tony Stark can schmooze and woo and charm like the best of them, he understood politics and the motivation behind individuals actions. What he _didn't_ understand was the human need to screw each other over or even screw themselves over. He did it just the same as everyone, but he didn't _understand_ it. Aliens did it too, don't get him wrong, but most of the planets out there had feuds with each other that kind of explained it. Completely different species were/are at _war_, some of which last for _centuries_, all of which are remembered and alluded to every time opposite sides meet somewhere so fights break out all the time. And while humans had warred with each other since the moment some prehistoric idiot had picked up a stick and figured out that it can hurt someone else with it, none of those wars were remembered as they should have been.

In short, the human mind was baffling to him. Human nature in general. Machines and codes were so much better. Straightforward and purposeful, each part having a purpose, a function vital for the effectiveness of the whole. It may sound like a cold world but it would be a world where no mother buried her son and no father feared to let his daughter out after sunset.

Pushing the thoughts aside because he knew 98% of the population wouldn't agree with him, Tony instead turned back to the topic at hand. "Nah, Barton was just being an insensitive dick, like always. Where's Viz?" Nebula's eye twitched and Tony smirked. Honestly, he was almost sure Vision had developed some sort of crush on Nebula. Ever since he brought everyone back from the snap, Maximoff had been unhinged. It took her months to get herself under control and she had only started actually _trying_ after Fury threatened her with getting Strange to restrain or take away her powers entirely after the fifth meeting room she wrecked. She was emotionally unstable and everyone had been pitying towards her since they knew she had been forced to kill Vision only to a minute later have to watch him die again at Thanos' hand. She blamed Tony, she blamed Quill and she blamed Stephen. That, they understood and just let her vent in a safe, controlled environment.

Her cold, volatile behavior towards Vision, though, _blaming_ him for deciding his life wasn't worth more than half of the universe and taking her aggression out on him, Tony was _not_ going to allow. It had started off as telling Vision to just leave the room when she starts frying at the edges so she can calm down but then one night, she had crept into his room and almost had a repeat of not only the moment she had destroyed the Mind Stone but also the moment when she had sent him through several floors of reinforced concrete. Tony had been awake and discussing some thing or another with Stephen in his lab - it had been a rough night of nightmares for the sorcerer and Tony had had a breakthrough on some project and _refused_ to go to bed until he notes it all down - when FRIDAY had alerted everyone of the situation. Had Stephen opened a portal into the room and Tony shot a tranquilizer at Wanda just a second later, Vision would have been in need of rebuilding once more.

Tony would have put his foot down after that event had Vision himself not decided to distance himself from Maximoff. "It is for the best," the android had explained one day as he sat with Tony in his lab with his latest cooking project on the engineer's work table waiting fir consumption. "I had not realized it before she used her powers so close to me," he had been very careful not to say _on me_ because it had still hurt him to think his first love could go off the rails and try to kill him like that. "But being inside the Soul Stone had destabilized her powers and the proximity of the Mind Stone since her return wasn't helping as the Stone itself seems to have been put out of balance. I will have to speak with Doctor Strange about it to see if it is happening to all of the Stones or just mine. Either way, it keeps tugging, calling on her power, like it is trying to take it back. It has been driving her to the edge."

That could explain the lashing out but the Sokovian woman never apologized and just blamed Vision some more about that turn of events, too.

Needless to say, whatever relationship they had before fell apart _spectacularly_.

Wanda has been showing signs as of late that she wanted them to go back to how they were, but Vision hadn't. He'd been too busy falling in what appears to be puppy love with Nebula, though the true depth and potential of those feelings are yet to be seen.

Nebula didn't know or understand this, as it seemed no one had ever shown any romantic inclinations towards her in her life, so she didn't know what to do with Viz always hovering right there beside her, following her around like a lost puppy. It was far too cute for two such powerful/dangerous people.

"I believe he is with Colonel Rhodes and Major Danvers at the moment."

"Cool. You wanna join us for a movie? It's a Frozen marathon." Nebula wasn't big on Disney movies but she nodded none the less. "Lang, Barnes, you're free to stay. The rest of you bug off before I set Dum-E with the fire extinguisher on you."

Barnes laughed in delight at the threat while Wilson was smart enough to immediately scatter, no doubt remembering his first meeting with the bot. Lang just came up to join them and sat at the floor while they all ignored Barton as he cursed and swore at them until Nebula sent him a pointed look while her hand reached for her weapons holster.

Tony just snuggled with Elsa and enjoyed the moment as the movie started.


	14. Chapter 14

**Show Yourself Into The Unknown**

**Summary: The one where Thanos is dead, Tony has weird dreams instead of nightmares, the Avengers watch dubious Disney movies and mystical creatures are more than real. Oh, and the Cloak totally ships it.**

"Hey, Merlin. Wong finally let you out of your magical mystery lair?" Was the first thing that greeted Stephen when he stepped out of the portal from the New York Sanctum and into Tony Stark's personal lab slash workshop a whole week after they returned from Norway and Wong had dragged his ass off for some proper rest and had made him stay there, taking it easy, until the librarian deemed him rested enough to let him out into the world and back to his duties as both Sorcerer Supreme and an Avenger, even a part time one. The first thing he did, of course, was come to check up on Tony and this time he even had a more viable excuse to do so, which should lessen some of Wong's usual teasing about his crush on the man. Not completely stop it, but lessen it. Stephen had long since learned to pick his victories where Wong was involved, so it didn't bother him that this was a very small one.

Still, excuses aside, it _is_ rather important for the Sorcerers of Kamar-Taj, and especially the Sorcerer Supreme, to check in on the first dragon and her summoner in ages while their bond was still young and mostly unexplored. Elsa's powers, as shown thus far, suggest she is indeed worthy and strong enough for the position of warden of all magic and all of existence but she was still young. She may be a dragon, but not even the magical protectors of Earth or the Asgardians they now housed really knew what that really meant and all that it entailed.

They would have to be careful and considerate of her.

Tony, when Stephen eventually found him, was hunched over a work table with some piece of technology in front of him that seemed to be related to the StarkPhone beside him, deft, cleaver fingers going through what must by now be routine, ingrained moves and gestures as he did this or that with it. He was obviously aware of company but he was also obviously on a work or inventing binge, which meant Stephen will be staring at the top of his head for the foreseeable future. Unless he sits down at the right angle so he can see Tony's profile and admire the way concentration sharpened his features and displayed the true intensity of his eyes.

Not too far away, Elsa was lying on the back of the couch, a huge, fluffy pillow balanced precariously on the top as she lounged, she and Tony's bots seemingly infinitely curious about each other as Dum-E persistently, clumsily tried to pet her like a house cat and U was offering her a wrench, as though it were a chew toy. It was endearing and so very much an atmosphere and a scene one might expect of Tony if they knew him well enough, making the sorcerer smile. Butterfingers was the first to see him and waved his metal arm in greeting, which he returned before deciding to do as he'd thought previously and take a seat so he can admire Tony in his element.

He took note of how easier and how much more eager Tony was working now that his arm was oh so miraculously healed.

Stephen had no doubt it was Elsa's work. He had searched for a magical cure himself after it was clear science and medicine would not be enough. He had come up empty, no matter how much time he spent searching, how many books he read or random magical beings from other dimensions he consulted. The amount and type of damage done by the Infinity Stones was completely out of league of everything else in the multiverse except, apparently, dragons. He had to admire the power and control such a healing had to have required and he wondered if it was an art Elsa could and would be willing to teach him. Kamar-Taj may be the new home and the second chance, whatever it may be, for all that 'broken' people in the world but not everyone wanted to become a sorcerer. In order not to risk another disciple going off the rails like Mordo had and deciding everyone who was using dimensional energy to solve their own problems instead of fighting for a higher cause, it would perhaps be best to heal wounds with that technique and let people go back to their normal lives.

Though he knew his intentions were good, he also knew that doing as such would dwindle the number of current and future sorcerers until it was nonexistent. People found themselves in the Mystic Arts by studying them and it is through said studying that they decided their life after they learn all that is necessary to channel magic into countering whatever damage had been done to their body. Perhaps it could be applied more to the people already firmly within the Sorcerers of Earth's midst? Surely they, who sacrifice so much, deserve to have their ailments healed? It may not be the way that the Ancient One had done things but she hadn't had a dragon on her side to make such things available.

It was something worth discussing with both the other Masters as well as Elsa herself. No doubt Tony would get involved as well at some point. The billionaire was too kind not to.

"Yes, he finally decided I've rested and recovered enough to let me out of his sight, the secret mother hen. He's been insufferable. I had to get the Cloak to bring me books from our library since Wong seems to be under the impression that I'd try whatever spells I found in there against his orders of rest and no magic. It's like he thinks I'm not a grown ass manor something."

"Well, you do tend to leap without looking at times," Tony teased and Stephen had to concede a point. Despite the fact that he had once almost summoned Dormammu because he hadn't researched everything about the spell he was doing and swearing he'd never repeat such a mistake, he still had a habit of getting overly excited by a new find in any of the many spell books that the order kept. "Not that I can talk much. My life motto is 'Sometimes you gotta run before you walk', so I really have no space to talk or criticize."

"That doesn't even make any sense," Stephen said absently as he felt the Cloak unclip itself from his shoulders and wander over to the three bots and one dragon. It seemed as curious about Elsa as Dum-E, U and Butterfingers were despite already having 'seen' and met her. Perhaps it was the magic Stephen felt coming from her, despite how natural it felt with the rest of the magic flowing through the earth and the air. She was masking herself or truly, dragon magic was indeed the purest form for it to feel so natural. But if it was indeed so pure, it made sense that _something_ made it stand out against the magic of the rest of the world. It was subtle, but it was there. "Where would you even apply such a phrase, anyway?"

"Testing out a new suit's flight capabilities moments after the first ever assembly without even running the first round of diagnostics to check how all of the systems were taking to their new environment and flying into freezing heights when the world's most advanced AI clearly advised against it?" Tony actually looked up to give him a sheepish smile as he replied and Stephen was sure a migraine was threatening to start pulsing within his skull.

"I'm _so_ glad that you have to give up such recklessness. Truly, the universe has done us all a favor. It has finally proven that miracles exist, for it has provided us with a means to keep Tony Stark alive and a little more cautious. Honestly, Tony, only you would do something like that."

The man in question just shrugged at his exasperation, definitely used to it not just from their year as friends but also from years of Pepper, Happy and especially Rhodey expressing it in various forms to show their worry for his lack of self-preservation instincts. "I'm not going to deny it," the genius says as he turns his attention half back to his work, half of it seeming to focus in on the funny interactions going on between three robots, one magical, sentient outerwear and one creature of myth and legend. "But you gotta understand, Doc, that's how some of my most amazing work came into being. If I didn't run before I could walk, I'd have died countless times over by now. In fact, if that wasn't my motto in life, I would have never made it out of that Afghani cave. Iron Man would have never been born." Stephen tries very hard not to think about that, about a world without Tony Stark in it. It seemed incredibly bleak. Not to mention that the universe would have been permanently cut in half, thus doomed to imbalance and eventual collapse back in 2012. "Even now that I have Elsa, that's not going to change. I'll just be more careful."

"I think at this point, I can't ask for more," he concedes with a sigh but a fond smile tugging at his lips. "So, how are you and Elsa settling in? Anything in particular that I missed?"

"Pretty good. Peter met her and you can imagine just how excited that got him." They both chuckled fondly, well aware of the teen's character and energy. His excitement must have been off the roof, Stephen thinks warmly. It was far too easy to care for Peter. "The Avengers are still trying to be 'subtle' about their hints that they should be in on 'training' her, but Fury seems to agree with me, Barnes, Rhodey, Carol and Hope that it's none of their business unless Elsa suddenly starts eating people. Lang, Ross, Nebula and Vision decided not to interfere in the meetings, though I'm pretty sure that's because Nebula fears she might kill someone if they try arguing with her at this point. You missed the grand argument we had over which movie was better, Frozen or Brave. I think that's the first time Barton's been civil towards me since after the whole Ultron debacle."

Okay, that's actually quite a few interesting things.

He'd heard from Peter, who had been in on the meeting when Director Fury finally met Elsa, all about how that went. Apparently, Fury has a thing for cuddly, deadly things, which, now that he thinks about it, is probably why he was so fond of Tony, too. Oh, the man hid it well but Stephen had seen fourteen million six hundred and five potential futures and not in all of them was the eye patch wearing man turned into dust in the Snap. And Tony was nothing but cuddly and deadly, people just seem to forget that under the hero status and the gold and red armor of Iron Man was still the man widely acknowledged as the Merchant of Death. While he didn't agree with the moniker, it was partially true, just probably not in a way most people realized.

Regardless, if Peter is to be believed, Fury took one glance at Elsa on Stark's left shoulder, saw his uninjured arm and the way the billionaire was actually drinking _water_ instead of coffee and he was already in her corner. When Elsa hissed at Rogers and later Hope because of something they were saying, he had decided that as soon as she was old enough, _she_ would be the new leader of the Avengers because apparently while, yes, she was indeed in favor of Tony in everything, she was also reasonable and fair, preferring balance over simple prejudices. Though, from what the spider teen said, Hope had given reasonable arguments until she realized her suggestion might not be for the best and expressed her appreciation regarding Elsa pointing out whatever flaws in whatever topic they were having. Rogers had been snapped at because he kept oh so subtly insisting Tony couldn't be trusted.

Stephen wondered if that man had half a functioning brain cell in his head and whether he should call an intervention in case it could end up being contagious and passed on to others (besides the already infected former rouges). The last thing they needed is a 1940s prejudicial stupidity spreading into an epidemic.

Still, Fury seemed mostly on board with Elsa's current situation, which was all fairly good. Ross had agreed to keep it on the down low for now that there was a magical, seemingly all-powerful being of legend living in the Avengers Compound, not that anyone could actually _do _anything about the location bit, given that it was still actually _Tony's_ property for all that the Avengers as a whole lived there.

"Which one won? I personally like Frozen better, but that might just be the sorcerer in me talking."

"We both put up some good points and then ended up watching both movies again and _still_ haven't made the final judgement. That was also the first time Barton and I agreed on anything since Ultron because Rogers suggested Sleeping Beauty and Little Mermaid were the _true_ winners of Disney movies, which neither Barton nor I agreed with. We then proceeded to point out all the subtle, hidden messages that most psychologist question these days regarding all the previous Disney movies. We also agreed on the fact that Mickey Mouse is _bullshit_ and that the voices are annoying as fuck. In those exact words. Rogers gave us his mighty glare of disapproval. Barton and I flipped him the bird. Loki appeared out of thin air just to add a third one for the sheer levels of indignity pouring off of Rogers. It was a good day."

"Oh, wow. I was not expecting that." Especially when Barton was the most vocal about his displeasure at Tony and anything Tony related. Maybe his incoming visit with his family had taken the edge off. Or they could have been drunk. Then again, Barton had a daughter who wanted to be an archer like him, meaning she wouldn't exactly be fond of the many messages in Disney movies stating that women needed big, strong, muscly men to save them or some other horseshit. And the man was best friends with the Black Widow. He rather doubted he supported any of those hidden messages if he'd stayed alive for this long.

"Yeah, neither was I nor Rogers, but it happened. I honestly thought I was hallucinating but FRI has video evidence."

"Indeed I do, Boss," the AI stated, sounding proud of the fact. Stephen just shook his head at the absurdity of it all.

"Did Loki say anything about Elsa or dragons in general when he was here or had he com just because he had sensed an opening for mischief?"

"He's still looking into it. Apparently there are plenty of texts that had been hidden or impossible to read until Elsa's was born." They both grimaced at what that implied regarding the potential state of dragons everywhere. If there even were any. "So he's mostly still reading up on it. There are many scripts that he needs to fully decipher and there is little clue as to how to do it in their library. He's struggling even if he let some of the older Asgardians help. Almost none of them are sorcerers, as Asgardians prefer an occupation like Thor's-"

"What? All muscle and no brain who hits things with a magical hammer, is the god of lightning and still manages to get electrocuted?"

Tony snorted, finally setting aside his project so they can talk properly. Please do excuse Stephen if he feels a bit smug for managing that. And a little bit flattered, too. "Pretty much. You know they're a warriors people. Anyway, that aside, they don't have all that many sorcerers and the people that came forward certainly aren't. But they are scholars, so that's helping, and some of them are old enough to talk about when humans first started forging metals. He's optimistic about finding more about dragons in the near future. Meanwhile, Thor said he'd pay a visit to Eitri to see if dwarves knew more about dragons than simply how to make weapons that combat them. How about your baby wizards? They find anything?"

"A pretty much similar situation. A dozen new texts appeared in books we have already scanned from page to page for any such information and they're all in incomprehensible languages we have little to no hope deciphering. We hit a gold mine with an Egyptian text but we can make very little sense of it as it is." Which was frustrating in all the worst ways possible. They _had _the information and yet it was still out of their reach.

"But of course, Stephen Strange," Elsa surprised them both when she spoke up, drawing their attention to her where she had left the bots and the Cloak to play by themselves, instead focusing her attention to their conversation. "There is little to no reason why any of your fellow sorcerers should be able to read any of the texts you might have found. They are meant for my Ib's eyes only, after all."

"For Tony?" Stephen asked, sharing a glance with the engineer and trying to figure out if he should ask why the dragon was calling him her heart in ancient Egyptian. He wondered if Tony already knew, given he wasn't surprised by the term at all.

"For dragon summoners in general, I figure," the man suggested with a shrug and Elsa nodded.

"So, what, is it written in some sort of dragon-speak?" He asked, wondering if he should call for Wong and have him write down whatever information Elsa was willing to share with them.

"In a sense, yes. Dragons are the true origin of the Asgardian 'Allspeak', but we do have a language of our own. Not other creature in the world can emulate the sounds required for it and many of said sounds are beyond hearing of most other species but the written word can indeed be read and understood by a dragon summoner, as you call them. Dragon summoners can also understand what their dragon is saying in 'dragon'speak', but they would not be able to understand other dragons. It is a complicated matter that I care little to explain when it will mean nothing to you in the long run. The point is, dragons hid their knowledge for only their and other summoners to find and read. Had you given Tony any of your books, he would have been able to read them from the start. You are wasting time translating the languages. The true depth and meaning of the texts will always escape you."

They stayed quiet for a while, just staring at her and reeling from this little bombshell she had dropped on them. Then Stephen turned around and opened a portal to the Sanctum, straight in the library and ignoring Wong's cursing at him for breaking this 'strict rule', as if the librarian wasn't used to it by now.

"I'll get the books real quick."


	15. Chapter 15

**Show Yourself Into The Unknown**

**Summary: The one where Thanos is dead, Tony has weird dreams instead of nightmares, the Avengers watch dubious Disney movies and mystical creatures are more than real. Oh, and the Cloak totally ships it.**

Elsa was a little surprised how long it took for the little peace she and her Ib had found upon her awakening to shatter. It's been weeks since then. They had celebrated Christmas and greeted the New Year before things finally went back to their regular script and the world caught up.

Now, as darkness dragged her down and he magic desperately lashed out to do _something_, not even she knew what, she could only hope Tony will be alright because _he felt so cold_.

00000

It started, like many things these days, with a simple conversation. All the people in Tony's life that mattered had adjusted well to having Elsa around and she stopped acting so formal and polite around them, showing them the happier, more childish side of herself that had stolen Tony's heart so. They could often be found enjoying some time together, doing this or that, chatting or simply lounging together as they teamed up to get Tony to either rest, eat or relax. It was not as hard as it used to be, Pepper Potts one day commented and thanked Elsa for it, as her presence is what finally got the man to take care of himself as he should have been doing from the start. Tony was indeed healthier and happier than he had been in years and it seemed that he was finally letting go of Titan and some other traumas he'd suffered over the years. He was also finally okay with acknowledging that Elsa was probably the reason he'll never suffer from PTSD because of the Snap, which he was still both weirded out by and grateful for.

The former rouges mostly learned by this point not to mess with the dragon or her summoner. Some of them still didn't understand all the boundaries Elsa put in place but they were learning and those who had, they helped the more mentally challenged ones to figure it out. At least someone had informed the Black Widow that Captain America was bound to end up frozen or burned alive one of these days so she made sure to steer him away from Tony and Elsa whenever she can. It was not ideal but so few things in life were so Elsa accepted what she could get.

Her bond with Tony was perhaps stronger than either of them had first thought it to be and it still had ways to surprise them how deeply they were connected. Elsa knew she should probably send Tony to learn some magic from the Masters of the Mystic Arts because it won't be long before he starts getting her magic. Only she knew Tony had an aversion to magic still, despite being friends with the Sorcerer Supreme and now being bound with one of the most magical creatures in existence. He would take some convincing but Elsa was sure she will be able to explain the importance of it to him eventually. They still had time, after all. The days so far had been easy and peaceful and they had had more than enough time to assert certain boundaries even between themselves. Yes, they may share the very essence of their souls but they were their own individuals and it would be far too easy to fall into bad habits. They needed some distance in order for them to be able to function separately if anything were ever to happen to one of them.

It proved to be a wise decision, one Tuesday late morning.

Tony was making a fruit salad for a late breakfast while Elsa lounged around on the free high chair beside the bar-like counter when the topic had finally come up. "So, I've been meaning to ask," the billionaire had began, making the dragon look up from where she had been sniffing at a kiwi. Tony was still focused on the banana he was cutting, which was probably a good thing as she didn't want him hurt. He'd been through more than enough to sustain even such a small wound, after everything. It's not as though she couldn't heal it - she'd healed his _arm_ after he used the Infinity Gauntlet, so such a miniature injury would be more than easy to repair - she'd just prefer not to have to.

"What, my Ib?" She always wanted to purr when a spark of warm pleasure ran through her summoner every time she used the term, the affection that flooded their bond. She was unsure if Tony could sense anything from her side on his, but dragons always knew what the one that had hatched them and gave them meaning and life felt. She wouldn't have it any other way.

"Okay, so, yesterday, Stephen and I had that little meeting, remember? I asked him why he had glowing gloves and he'd said that the cold was bothering his hands so he was using magic to keep his gloves warm. And this morning, Barnes had said he was uncomfortable to go out running with Rogers in the snow and cold. But it didn't feel all that cold to me. In fact, I hadn't been cold even when we had been in north Norway, when everyone but Loki was complaining about it being freezing. Even outside of my suit, I hadn't been bothered by it. And, well, the temperature in the Well of Ahtohallan was absolute zero and I was somehow alive. So, a thing occurred to me and I tested it out after Barnes left to find a warmer sweater. I stepped outside as I am," the man gestured at his short sleeved band shirt and loose sweats and bare feet. "And I didn't feel like I was cold. I stepped into the snow and then even sat in it for fifteen minutes and I didn't even feel a little chill. Then I remembered our first meeting and how you turned 'The cold never bothered _me_ anyway' into 'The cold will never bother _you_ anyway'. So I'm asking if you've somehow made me immune to cold."

"Not _immune_," she answered. "Just _unbothered_."

"Yeah?"

"Ib are the most defining trait in a dragon," Elsa said, thinking of how best to explain. "As a dragon can never _be_ without their Ib, it is the summoner's personality that defines the dragon. Yes, the dragon can be infinitely older than the person that calls them from their egg, but the connection between dragon and hatcher is made before either of them are born. Only once their souls are created and connect in the Primary Abyss - the place dragon lore calls the cradle of all souls that are, were or will be - can they be born. As the summoner will be the first to be born into the world, their character is created first, right then and there. Fates and Destiny shape them, shape their lives and make traits and characteristics that make each soul different and then those characteristics are passed on to the dragon. Dragons can be the exact opposite of their Ib or completely identical. We are what our partner needs. In our case, _you_ needed someone who will help you overcome the tragedies and traumas of your life. You needed a confident and a companion besides the ones of your own creation to understand and support you like no one else. You were in need of feeling constantly loved. You needed the surety that you will have _someone_ who will always take your side. You needed someone to battle your nightmares."

"And I got you," the genius breathed and she purred at the awe in his voice, he wonder, the disbelief at being so lucky and happy. He had put down the knife and was ignoring his fruit bowl at the moment, approaching her with a hand held out to stroke her nose like one would a horse. "The most amazing thing that had ever happened in my life."

"Yes, you got me. An ice, dream dragon, the most magical and, quite frankly, the most powerful kind, as we are limited only by imagination and you have more than enough of that for the both of us, Tony."

"But you breathe fire," he pointed out with a confused frown and Elsa smiled at him.

"Indeed, for all dragons breathe fire. Fire is our life, our _souls_ are made of it. It is how all dragons are the same. But we each have our own special traits and abilities, like any other creature. I have ice and so much magic because you _needed_ me to, as you want to get over the traumas and stress caused by the cold and by the misuse of magic. I have power over ice so I can be what you need to overcome it. You will no longer associate a lack of warmth with betrayal and loss and sorrow and hurt and fear, but rather with _me_, with love and laughter ad joy and belonging. So if I say you'll never be bothered by the cold, I can make it happen, as for now, it is the sensation that brings back awful memories. Not to mention how easily one can die of cold. Due to our connection, no matter how low the temperatures may drop, you will never be cold nor will you be harmed by it."

"Perfect," a voice says from where the kitchen connects with the common floor living room, making both human and dragon whirl around, a gauntlet on Tony's hand closest to the source of the voice and fire in Elsa's opened jaws. Director Nicholas Fury regarded them with seeming nonchalance but Elsa could practically _smell_ the lingering fear on him. He may like her but he still feared her or was wary, at the very least. Smart man. "You'll be the perfect ones for the mission, then."

"Mission? What mission? We just had a meeting two days ago and there was no mention of a mission," the billionaire protested as they put away their weapons of choice upon seeing no threat, but an ally.

"Yes, well, this came up. Today." He walked over and put a tablet on the counter between them, from which Tony warily took it, obviously hesitant to accept any sort of mission after having so much time free from it all. "The Amazon rain forest, Brazil. The local fishermen said they saw some weirdly dressed people with what looked like horns sticking through their hoods. They at first thought it was a prank and so one of the fishermen approached them. Only it was no prank. According to eye witnesses, the robes were then thorn off and freezing air surged through the entire forest. The Amazon is frozen from the surface to the river bed, Stark and everything in the forest is frozen solid. It's snowing and it's a blizzard. It's obviously caused by something magical, so we had already called in Doctor Strange and he said he'd be ready to go in a few hours, but we'd thought it best to ask our ice expert for a hand."

"Are the animals and the people still alive under the ice? Or are we too late to help them?" Tony asked as he pulled up an image taken from some sort of drone, no doubt, as it was from a higher altitude and not as sharp as it could have been, though that might be the wind's and the blizzard's fault.

"Actually," Stephen's voice floated over to them from where he had opened a portal in the living room for him, Wong and a dozen other sorcerers to step through, all of them actually dressed for the weather they were about to get into instead of relying on magic to keep them warm. "All living creatures, including plants and insects in that area, are more in danger of evolving into those same snow demons. They're a dying race from a different dimension and they are known to come to other worlds to collect as many new fellow snow demons as they can manage. As you can imagine, it unfortunately has a bad side effect on the world they harvest from."

"There re millions of pants and animals and who knows how many people that live near the Amazon," her Ib said with a frown, determination coloring his face and shinning in his eyes already. "Not only can we just _leave_ them to their fates, but something like this would seriously damage our planet's entire ecosystem. What do we need to do?"

"Preferably, send them back before their magic can take roots. If that no longer remains an option, we must fight them off, no matter the cost," Wong replied, sounding grim at the second possibility and Tony can't fight a wince. Elsa agrees. Her own kind may very well be extinct, as was the possible future of the snow demons. No one wanted to be the cause of an entire other race's extinction. Well, except Asgardians and Frost Giants. Speaking of which ...

"Have you sent for Loki? He is a powerful mage. He'd be very helpful in such a situation."

But Fury shook his head in a negative. "No can do. Apparently he slipped into one of Asgard's old realms to consult with some old tree lady or something about something. Not sure if it's Stark-related or Thor-related. Thor wasn't very forthcoming in information other than the fact that Valkyrie went with him as backup."

Elsa snorted inwardly at the Frost Giant's tendency to group his priorities according to his brother and the first Midgardian who didn't cry folly when he said he, too, had been mind controlled during the New York invasion back in 2012. Somehow, despite her hatcher's wariness and logical mistrust of the trickster, those two had become good friends, especially now that Loki had an excuse to pop up whenever he felt like it under the guise that he had come with new revelations about the texts he was studying. Ever since Stephen brought that first book and let Tony read it, things have been different on the deciphering front. Elsa let them entertain themselves even though she knew, ultimately, no matter how many words and phrases her Ib translates for them, the true meaning of the texts will never fully register. Dragon knowledge was not meant for those now of dragon kind.

Tony was still not used to seeing what was neigh random scribbles and somehow making sense of them without even trying, producing only half of the sounds he himself could emulate. He had insisted Elsa read a single sentence over and over again a dozen times while he tried to record it in every technique and frequency detector possible in hopes of getting the whole message _verbally_ instead of instinctively. He was attempting to find a way to _hear_ her in her own language and not the way that it translated into his very soul. The experiments were interesting and it was fun to see him theorize and then try to explain to FRIDAY_ how_ he understood a single word of it all when the AI couldn't even notice the distinction between two words. So far, the books were still left mostly unread as their reading was more for experimentation purposes than actual gathering of written data.

Her Ib was cute with where his priorities lay. He had at his fingertips he secrets to all of the multiverse's knowledge and the thing he was interested in was the 'science' and 'logic' behind the frequencies and decibels Elsa's voice can reach when she speaks in her own language.

"So it's just us. Against snow demons. Awesome," Tony sighed and ran a hand through his hair. "Well, I guess the peace lasted longer than I had expected it. Should have seen this coming from a mile away. Okay, Popeye, when should we be ready to go?"

"We're still waiting on a few more Masters to fetch the tools needed to help us open the portal to their dimension, but we're mostly ready." Which was odd, since Fury had just told them the sorcerers needed a few hours to get ready.

It seemed the man thought as much, too. "You told me you needed a couple of more hours to prepare."

"Not that kind of prepare," Wong replied in his usual deadpan. "We ourselves are ready but the spell required to open the snow demon's dimension will need the before mentioned preparation time. Their dimension is completely unstable and any travel between it or other dimensions can very well end up destroying either the traveler or the dimension itself. Neither of which we want to happen."

"Fuck. How'd it get so messed up?"

"We don't know," said Stephen, though he sounded as disturbed by this as Tony was. "They didn't always interact with other species nor try to repopulate in this manner. One day, a couple of decades ago, their dimension just ... near collapsed and eradicated most of their numbers. We still don't know the cause of it but the magic there is ... unusable. They've been resorting to this method ever since."

"The Ancient One tried to solve the problem of whatever was disrupting the flow of magic in their dimension but even she only just managed to come back only because she had had the Eye of Agamotto at hand to assist her," one of the sorcerers that had come with Strange, looking much older than the Sorcerer Supreme, shared.

Elsa did not like the sound of that. Magic - or what most people would dub as _magic_ \- was essential in the balance of everything. From the smallest particle to the multiverse itself, the energies existing between dimensions were vital for their continued existence. Some creatures were able to instinctively tune in on these energies while species like humans and Asgardians had to be _taught_ how to do so. Elsa's own kind, dragons, were creatures made _directly_ from _magic_ and anything related to it comes easier than breathing to them. So she knows, no matter how young and inexperienced she may be or the fact that she had never seen the dimension in question, that something is horribly wrong. Something that is affecting not only an entire dimension but also something that was affecting the _magic_ that was keeping it together. The snow demons might be trying to repopulate but unless they do something about whatever is - most probably - clogging the magical ley lines of their world, their species will not survive.

And she feared, perhaps more than just one dimension dying from corrupted magic flowing through its essence, that whatever was wrong there could be wrong in other places. It is her duty now to oversee all of magic. The multiverse is vast and infinite. There are so many potential causes that she's not even sure what to think, where to start searching for a possible solution. If the corruption is like a sickness, other dimensions might be already involved. That increases the chances of it spreading even further and she knows, eventually, it will reach _Earth_, where _Tony_ is.

"Well, whatever's bothering their dimension, our priority right now should be to protect our own planet," Fury says in response to the sorcerers' explanations.

"I hate to agree, but he _is_ right," Wong says, firm. "Earth is all that holds Dormammu at bay and whatever happens in the Amazon rain-forest, it could far too easily affect the rest of the world, which would affect our ability to protect our reality. As horrible as it may seem, we can't _let_ them get away with this. If they think we are weak or indifferent to their actions, they will turn the entirety of our planet into a breeding, harvesting ground. The entirety of life on Earth depends on us getting them back into their own dimension."

"Then what are we waiting for!?" Tony asks, popping a few strawberries and banana slices into his mouth before tapping on his ever present nanite housing unit twice and the red and gold armor washes over him almost enticingly. "FRIDAY, be a dear and inform all the right people that I'll be out and alert authorities that the Avengers are on the Amazon River business."

"I've already alerted the right authorities, Stark," Fury said with an annoyed scowl but her Ib only snorted, even as he opened his arms for Elsa to jump into.

"Yes, well, I like to be sure. They'll surely appreciate to know who will be involved and our ETA, all things considered. This isn't solely your operation, Nick. This is not _SHIELD_. You don't get to be selective about who you inform and what you tell them. That's the point of the Accords and in case you've forgotten, I'v signed them. You want to be part of the show? Get used to it."

Fury regards him with, well, fury in his eyes but he lets it go with a terse nod. "Get ready. You're leaving as soon as you can."

00000

That's how it started. A mission, dire but unassuming, regular for all that none of them had ever faced against enemies like these before.

Elsa had never wanted anyone to get hurt.


	16. Chapter 16

**Show Yourself Into The Unknown**

**Summary: The one where Thanos is dead, Tony has weird dreams instead of nightmares, the Avengers watch dubious Disney movies and mystical creatures are more than real. Oh, and the Cloak totally ships it.**

Their arrival to the site of the unnatural blizzard was, all in all, unmemorable, even when they eventually ran into what must be patrols of the snow demons they were supposed to send back to their home dimension. Tony was of the humble opinion that the gigantic creatures were even uglier when their image wasn't obscured and was up close. Both his girls agreed when he voiced his opinion and even the ever professional Wong had to concede to his point. Those things looked nasty.

The patrols weren't initially aggressive when the snow demons caught sight of them, simply watching them from afar. But then they had noticed that none of them were being frozen in the unnatural temperatures and they charged. Tony, Stephen and half the sorcerers immediately became distraction and defense while Wong led the other sorcerers in setting up whatever was needed to get these creatures and their eternal winter out of the Amazon rain-forest. However, he couldn't properly fight - even if it was mostly evasive maneuvers and hit and retreat strategies - with Elsa in his arms so he had told her to watch over Wong and the others and not interfere unless absolutely necessary.

The snow demons, thought, caught sight of her in the air near the circle of working sorcerers, let out a piercing whistle that vibrated throughout the frozen wasteland that had once been green and full of life, only hours ago, and the rest of the big uglies' palls appeared seemingly out of nowhere.

Their goal, their _target_ \- Elsa.

"Oh, hell to the no!" Tony exclaimed as soon as he caught on, forgetting all about these creatures being near extinct at the same time as the snow demons got serious and started using deadly force against the defensive/distraction team. He swooped in, letting lasers and his repulsors collide with the snow demons and evading when they tried to smack him out of the sky. The heat of his attacks bothered them, he was quick to realize and berated himself for not having come to that logical conclusion on his own sooner. It was right there in their _name_, after all.

And they certainly lived up to it, spitting out snow and ice like cliche video game characters, but it seemed to be rather troublesome for the sorcerers, who were struggling to maintain fire spells or whatever else generated enough heat to ward them off but not seriously harm them. The snow made them sluggish if it hit them, though Tony had no doubt it would be rather deadly for them if they hadn't been wearing spelled clothing to protect them from exactly this kind of attacks.

Tony, on the other hand, didn't so much as pause or feel it when ice hit him. Yes, his breath hitched, but more out of instinct and habit than it having any effect. The cold indeed didn't bother him. Feeling himself in a strange sort of mood, feeling _free_, Tony found himself humming Let It Go as he fought, mostly keeping an eye out for anyone who needed backup.

Out of everyone present, only Tony and Stephen could take to the air, Elsa not counting as she is still a none-combatant, no matter how powerful she might be, and she had only recently started flying. For all that her scales seemed to be made of ice or some crystals or whatever, the patagia on her wings had only matured and strengthened enough for flight about ten to fifteen days ago. Yes, her wings were more than strong enough to sustain long-term flight and yes, she _did_ know instinctively, more so than any bird or fish, how to use the muscles in said wings. It hadn't taken her an hour to take flight, though she worked on her landing for the rest of the day. Regardless of that, she was too small and too young to go into battle, _especially_ against something that seemed to be so intent on hunting _her_.

Didn't people know by now that a dragon _won't_ do anything they say if they're not that dragon's summoner? It'd make more sense to try and capture Tony, though he rather doubted these dull creatures knew he was the summoner. Something he'd very much like to keep secret. Hatchers were dragons' weaknesses. Tony will have to be incredibly careful to never get himself caught again. Elsa would be at anyone's mercy with him in their hands.

Though the snow demons were called _demons_, they essentially weren't evil, or so Strange had said. Tony was tempted to believe him if not for the fact they were trying to get to Elsa with little regard to everyone else around them. At least they weren't trying to _kill_ her, though that wasn't at all comforting. Sometimes, some fates are worse than death.

_'Elsa, you think you can help us a bit? Or would your help be more useful to the whole opening a portal and sending these satanic big boots - big feet? - back to their dimension?'_ He thought to Elsa, one of the perks to having what is essentially a soulmate. They shared a deep connection, one they had to work on at times, be it setting boundaries or testing them. It was extremely useful and even funnier when they used it to mess with people. Now, it worked as the best possible communicator. _'Getting rid of all of this snow might be nice.'_

_'If I were to get rid of it now, it might damage the life it has encased. My mere presence near the sorcerers will help them stabilize the portal faster. So helping you it is, though I cannot go to your heights- Watch out!'_

Tony moved out of the way just in time for a big icicle, _sharp_ as all hell, flew past him. Had he not jerked away at Elsa's cry, the thing would have pierced his heart. He whirled around to see what could have possibly nearly killed him, only to blink at what was obviously the boss snow demon. All the creatures looked similar, near identical, except this one. _This one_ had some sort of white chest guard from collarbones to hips and there was an emblem on them that Tony could not quite make out but something about that armor just felt _off_ and set off alarm bells in his mind.

"Hand over the dragon, human, and we will let you live," the chief snow demon demanded and Tony felt his metaphorical hackles raise up.

"How about you get the fuck off of my lawn before I melt your face off instead," he called, proving his point with a powerful photon blast that very nearly did hit the demon in the face. He dodged with a growl but the blast still hit one of his minions behind him that had not seen or not been fast enough to avoid it.

"You cannot claim an entire useless forest your 'lawn', human."

"Newsflash, asshole, I'm Tony Stark. I've claimed the _entire planet_ as my fucking lawn so get the fuck off of it." Another blast, but the chief snow demon used the staff he was carting around to deflect it and lunged at Iron Man, who flew out of range of a physical attack but this dude apparently knew some magic, as he started shooting random snow and icicles at the armored hero. Tony had FRIDAY help him maneuver out of the way of each one while all the while shooting back, making the boss dance around the shots down on the ground. The genius snorted and activated his mini missiles, leaving the targeting system to use facial recognition instead of heat seeking. Their opponents were much too cold to in any way be targets for that method.

"Then you shall _die_, Tony Stark!" And then he made the surrounding snow and ice fucking rise from the ground, whirling around like a tornado and heading straight for the red and gold armor. Tony cursed his luck as the howling winds tried to draw him in, kicking the boosters and repulsors to higher power as the damned thing chased him. He cursed even more when he saw two more rise from the ground and join the chase, nearly managing to corner him a few times. When a fourth and a fifth started rising and Tony started worrying about his ability to play dodge-ball with huge forces of nature, golden Eldritch magic flashed around one and the other seemed to be disintegrated by some lava-red chains that looked similar to the ones Strange had used on Titan against Thanos but not quite. A quick glance told him it was indeed the Sorcerer Supreme that had come to his aid and a suspicion had him FRIDAY zooming in on the man's face.

" ... Did you just fucking _wink_ at me, Stephen!?"

"Head in the game, douchebag, we still have three more to deal with," the former world renown neurosurgeon called, amusement clear in his voice. Before Tony could flip him off or throw back a rude or sarcastic comment, he found himself having to flee again lest he get caught in the three existing tornadoes. Stephen seemed to be tackling the boss snow demon now, so at least no more will be rising from the ground. A situation better than the one moments before.

" ... I really need to stop jinxing myself."

"I'll make a note of it, Boss," FRIDAY chirped in sarcastically as they both tried to wrap their brilliant minds around the fact that apparently the chief snow demon had had enough time to direct the three tornadoes to mash together. And while the initial result had been terrifying enough, being a freakishly huge ice and snow tornado, the end result was even more horrific and Tony had no idea how to fight it as it was now a dragon of snow, tornadoes and _rocks_ that had been ripped from the ground or who knows where. The thing was nowhere near solid but the wind currents were too strong and the debris and ice it carried was too fast.

"I wish we had Thor. Or Carol. Why hadn't we brought Carol along? I bet she could sucker-punch this shit."

"Boss, I suggest you move. It's coming straight for us!"

"_And_ fuck my life!" And you know what was even worse than a snow, ice, tornadoes, rock dragon made of foreign magic? A sow, ice, tornadoes, rock dragon who breathed freezing air and icicles when it opened its mouth and roared supersonic sounds that actually left half of the armor's systems flashing alarm reports. "_And _fuck my life hard! FRIDAY, we have any bombs strong and hot enough to disrupt that thing from the inside?"

"We'd need to _get inside_ for it to have any effect and this is not one of those Chitauri space wales for you to reenact the tale of Jonas with. Not to mention that my calculations suggest we'd have to spend more than half of our arsenal to generate enough energy and heat to have any effect on that thing. It's minus thirty degrees Fahrenheit in there, Boss!"

"Damn, new plan. Elsa!" He shouted for his baby girl's benefit even though he knew Elsa heard him in the shared portion of their souls. _'If I carried you, would you be able to burn through this mockery of a dragon?'_

_'You doubt me?'_ The young dragon shot in return and he could see her already preparing to leave the sorcerers still trying to open up the snow demons' dimension and jump into his arms when he's nearby.

_'You'll need to fly higher, I'm afraid. The thing is right on my tail and I can't risk our allies by flying so low.'_

_'Worry not, my Ib. I can handle myself.'_ And Tony would have to trust her as he had to dodge another attack from the damned construct chasing him. A near hit had him dropping in the air for a couple of seconds before he got his bearings back and the dragon near;y swallowed him. _'Oh, that thing is going _down_,'_ Elsa promised and he looked up to see her holding herself fairly steady in the air and he dived for her. She was in his arms in seconds and he had FRIDAY revert most of the power into the flight systems so they can get enough ground to made a U turn and take their turn to attack.

"May it be noted that I strongly disagreed and discouraged this idea? For when Doctor Strange freaks out," FRIDAY said just as they made the turn and charged at the construct, Tony, against all instincts, holding Elsa headfirst in front of himself so she has a free path for her attack.

"Noted," both dragon and her summoner said in the same deadpan voice before they let out battle cries that resembled more the roar of a dragon and Elsa took a deep, long breath only for her to breathe out scorching fire as they entered the snow, ice, tornadoes, rock dragon's jaws. The effect was instantaneous. Apparently, dragon fire was way too much for the construct and it fell apart as Tony flew himself and Elsa through it, his little dragon continuing to breathe fire until they got back to clear skies and the last of the debris, now melted and fused together from the heat, fell to the ground. He dearly hoped none of that ice or debris had been people or animals. "Huh. That actually worked."

"I'm telling Doctor Strange."

"Don't be a tattletale, FRIDAY~!" He almost giggled when he remembered JARVIS' favorite saying on the matter, one he'd regularly used whenever he didn't approve of Pepper or Rhodey telling Obidiah things, back in the day. "Snitches end up in ditches~!" Tony all but singsonged.

"It seems the sorcerers have managed to open the portal to their dimension," Elsa noted and Tony turned back around to check on their allies to see that she was, in fact, right. There was a huge rift leading seemingly into a complete disaster of a dimension with melting snow and _molten_ snow, as though it is lava but freezing instead of scorching hot. Perhaps the most worrying thing Tony can see through the rift, though, is a bunch of people dressed in some sort of uniforms/armor similar to the chest plate that the chief snow demon was wearing. He doesn't like what they're _doing_ over there, though, because it looked like they were tearing the world asunder by waging chaos, attacking more of the snow demon people who were running around seemingly like headless chickens - well, as far as Tony could tell with no insider knowledge and a bad view point. What truly distressed him, though, was not just the meaningless deaths - there were _children_ there, for crying out loud! - but the machines that stuck in the ground and seemed to be gathering _energy_ in big condensed balls and then _breaking it apart_ with huge lasers.

A sharp prickle of fear and a near deafening buzz of anger through the bond had him looking to Elsa even before her voice reached his ears. "Close the gate. _Now_! Before they see and come through!"

"But they need to get the snow demons through!" Tony exclaimed back, surprised and worried as he had yet to feel such ... _desperation_ in Elsa's voice or feel it echoed down their link. Yes, their bond was young and they have only been exposed to peaceful days so far but this sounded almost disproportionate in comparison to it all. He'd never thought he'd hear Elsa _panic_ like this.

"Please, Tony, _please_!" The dragon rounded up and pleaded with him. _Pleaded_, eyes desperate and wide with fear, her heart skipping beats under his hand when he retracted a gauntlet to try and calm her down with skin on skin contact. "Just close that gate."

Tony hesitated but had FRIDAY patch him through to Wong. He was _so_ glad he had made the sorcerers take the comm units he'd made for them otherwise he'd have to fly down to 'ground zero' to deliver the message and Elsa obviously wouldn't have been comfortable with that. "Wong, I don't have the time to explain, but you need to close the portal, _now_!"

"Are you _mad_, Stark?" Came the incredulous and enraged response from the other side of the line, breaking Wong's usual resting bitch composure. A zoom in on the Asian man's face shows that the emotions were so strong they had even broken through his resting bitch face, leaving his expression to match the growing rage and offense at the instruction. "We just got it open and this is the only way to get rid of all of this ice and snow as well! We can't just _close it_!"

"Well, you'll have to. Elsa is insisting that there's something on the other side that's apparently dangerous and- Oh shit!" The warning had apparently come too late and too much time had been wasted. One of the white soldiers on the other side had seen them and had apparently reported the rift between worlds because there was suddenly a surge of more of them going straight for it. The sorcerers had no time to prepare themselves before an entire battalion made its way through and shot them all where they stand. Only Wong and some old dude managed to get out of the way because they had been standing on the other side of the circle, out of immediate sight, and they fell back into portals to avoid their comrades' fates.

The strange, white dressed people poured out of the portal on foot or on some flying contraptions that looked more advanced than the things the Chitauri had flown on and was equipped with weapons. They didn't hesitate to start shooting at both sorcerers and the snow demons indiscriminately, not shooting at Tony for some reason. There were dying or pained cries everywhere as several dozen of the soldiers started laying waste to the battlefield. Tony panicked when he saw a huge warship heading for the portal.

No, he thought, determined and scared. _No_. This will _not_ be a second Thanos, damn it!

Stephen, while busy fighting off the new enemies, must have caught sight of the same thing because he activated his comm and hailed Tony. "I need backup and a distraction so I can close the portal. Think you and Elsa can help with that?"

"Of course, Doc- Watch out!" Stephen had just enough time to duck before he could get mauled by a huge, ugly looking wolf-thing that seemed to be snarling and salivating more than any creature Tony had seen so far. "What the fuck _is_ that?! What the hell is going on here!?"

"Explanation time later, my Ib. The Sorcerer Supreme needs our assistance to close the gate." Right. Trust Elsa to keep relatively calm in such a situation even though _she_ had been the first to panic.

Tony let the nanites cover his previously exposed hand back up before he surged forward like earlier, keeping Elsa in front of himself as the dragon started spewing scorching and freezing fire at once, drawing attention to themselves as they both fired all that they've got at the new enemies. Between his weaponry and Elsa's powers, they'd managed to rid themselves of a good portion of the white soldiers that had initially come through when the huge warship on the other side started entering this side. Stephen had apparently been held up with killing the rabid wold thing that had been trying to snap him in half with its jaws and had then proceeded to fight the rest of its pack with copies of himself still at it while the man himself was making rapid hand gestures at the bottom of the gate. Wong was keeping his back safe from the left but one of the wolves had managed to stray close enough to kill the only other remaining sorcerer, that old guy that had survived the initial attack, and the wolf had made quite a gory scene before Wong had seen, too late, and blasted the thing off of him.

It took Tony a bit too long for his liking to figure out that he wasn't being targeted _at all_. And it took him only a few seconds longer to figure out _why_.

"Stephen, hurry the fuck up! These things are attracted to your magic and are killing you for it!"

"I'm trying!" The taller man snapped back as his magic enveloped the rift and seemed to forcefully be knitting it back together when one of those strange white soldiers somehow broke through the defensive circle and made a lunge for the sorcerer, only for the snow demon boss to appear seemingly out of nowhere and to protect his defenseless back. Stephen jerked at the action happening behind him but he seemed to calm after the boss said something to him that Tony had no way of making out before he returned to his task and the snow demon boss started making some really complicated maneuvers with his staff, which was glowing really brightly at this point. Tony tried not to panic when the snow and ice suddenly lifted, only for it not to attack him but the white soldiers and to start pushing back against the big space ship that had been trying to get through the magical gates. "He's an ally! Watch his back!"

"On it!" Tony responded, flying a bit closer but keeping a cautious eye on everything. The Amazon rain-forest seemed to be slowly returning to life around them as the last of the cold left the flora and fauna it had imprisoned beforehand. At least that part of the mission seems to have gone right, no matter how quickly everything turned crazy. He sent a quick notice to Fury that things were under control-ish before turning his attention back to the matter at hand, just in time to see a figure emerge from the front of the big ship, protected from the chaos trying to push the thing back by what must have been an impressive force field. He was decked out in some type of metal-plated armor from head to toe and Stark couldn't tell if it was actually part of his 'skin' or an actual armor like his Iron Man suit was. All he knew was that the dude had a huge green orb as a power source of some sort and that an even bigger gun seemed to be connected by it, powering the gun up with an almost sickly green energy. "Guys, there's some freaky martian person coming out of the ship with a really big ass gun! He might try to shoot at you so some shields would be nice!"

"It is not us that is in danger, Star Born!" A gravely, rumbling, almost snarling rough voice snapped from the other end. A quick glance confirmed Tony's suspicion that it was the boss snow demon who was speaking, apparently having overheard his communication with Stephen and yelling in the former doctor's general direction in hopes of getting his own message across. Though the title the dude gave him was weird as fuck and that's saying something, considering how weird Tony's life in general was. "Get away! The targets are you both!"

But the warning seems to have come too late. The gun was charged and by the time both Elsa and Tony realized it was aimed at them, the white dude was already aiming at them. The shot rang powerful, thunderous, fast as lightning, making it through the swiftly closing rift just in time and heading straight towards them. FRIDAY already had shields forming but neither she nor Tony were optimistic about the barely formed nanites holding up under the blast with no time to strengthen the bonds between them at the inevitable and swiftly approaching impact. Tony closed his eyes, apologized to all of his friends and held on tight to Elsa. He tried to ignore her panic as he shoved his soul into her care so that when his body died, she'd have that which really mattered and hopefully that would be enough to keep her alive.

Apparently, Elsa had no intention of allowing this to happen and didn't allow his soul to cross the threshold into her own. Instead, as he would later learn, she made a big burst of her magic and formed a magical ice shield in the shape of a thick sphere all around them in a last ditch effort to protect them from the brunt of the attack's impact.

Tony didn't know this.

All he knew was a piercing pain ripping through his chest and his world going dark and cold, as though he was falling once again into the depths of the Well of Ahtohallan. Only there was no Elsa waiting for him on the other side. There was no light, no hope, ho relief. There was no sound, no nothing. All there was ... was pain.

He was lost.


	17. Chapter 17

**Show Yourself Into The Unknown**

**Summary: The one where Thanos is dead, Tony has weird dreams instead of nightmares, the Avengers watch dubious Disney movies and mystical creatures are more than real. Oh, and the Cloak totally ships it.**

"_How_ could this _happen_!?" An almost exasperated and disappointed™ Captain America asked as he watched the pitiful group that had returned from the impromptu mission getting treated in the medical wing, showing none of the concern that should be there for the people he so often preached about being his teammates and how they should trust him more. Stephen could absently register how close to murder several people in the room were - Nebula, Rhodey and Pepper looked ready to eviscerate Stephen and Fury, Hope looked ready to kill Rogers first before she set her claws on them and Wong looked ready to kill _everyone_ who had no place in the medical wing of the Avengers Compound if they didn't leave _right the fuck now_ and even Stephen himself would be up for breaking his doctor's oaths at this point if it meant he can finally get some peace and fucking quiet and some rest from these imbeciles - but that was only in the periphery of his focus.

In the center of it all was, surprise surprise, one genius billionaire playboy philanthropist and his dragon, both of which were out cold ... _quite literally_, at that. And they both looked to be in agonizing pain and stuck in haunting nightmares in their comas.

After the strange blast had somehow shattered the ice shield sphere Elsa had hastily threw up to protect herself and her summoner -despite how _impossible_ that should be given Tony himself had ran several rigorous and punishing tests on the strength of the ice his dragon companion could create - Tony and she seemed to be having a pain seizure for several minutes in the air. Stephen will never forget their screams, how they had sounded like they were being torn apart molecule by molecule. It had lasted nearly a full minute before it stopped and the two just plummeted from the air. Had it not been for FRIDAY taking over, the both of them would have fallen into the once again alive and unfrozen Amazon river, where they might have met a far worse fate as piranhas lived in the river. When Stephen had finally made sure that the 'stitches' in reality will hold for the time being before he can get a group of sorcerers to come and help him repair the rift properly, neither of the two were in any way responsive and both he and Wong were _horrified _\- to say the _least_ \- to discover how low Elsa's magic seemed to be running. The constant, impossible-to-be-ignored hum of her magic was near nonexistent and both she and Tony were catatonic. Whatever had hit them, it had had a strong and nasty effect.

Neither sorcerer had wasted any time in bringing them back to the compound and hooking Tony up to various instruments to monitor their condition through him, as no one actually knew what to make of any readings they might get from the dragon. The readings from Tony, though, were terrifying enough on their own.

Any normal human being would have been dead with how low his core temperature was at the moment. The connection to Elsa seemed to be the only thing keeping him alive.

Too bad that, according to a hastily summoned Aidna, Elsa's magic was also that which was dragging him towards death as well.

"He shows no signs of any physical wounds but FRIDAY keeps insisting that a shard of ice pierced his heard. The armor has it recorded in detail," Bruce Banner could be heard somewhere puzzling over the readings FRIDAY was showing him to counter his arguments that her creator was physically unharmed.

"It is magic," Aidan reminds, sounding unimpressed with the scientist's logical thinking and reasoning. Stephen kind of agrees but he finds he himself is catatonic, if not for the same reason the genius and his soulmate were. He had failed to protect Tony. Again. And this time, it really _was_ a failure rather than a calculated nonexistent risk on Tony's part. "Dragon magic, might I remind. From what Master Stark has told us, Elsa has been kept in the coldest of temperatures for centuries. She is an ice dragon. She has protected him from cold but it would seem her own magic can pierce that protection. She would never harm him and yet it would seem that the blast has forced a shard from her shield straight into his heart and is slowly freezing it."

"And there is no known cure for a frozen heart, no matter the means it has come to be," Loki, who had been hastily summoned back to help with the current situation, regretfully explained, looking with something between rage and sorrow at the downed pair. Tony, despite being catatonic, seemed to be somehow still reaching out for Elsa, searching for her, while the dragon herself already seemed resigned to her fate, to the death of her summoner being her own fault. Whether they were all just projecting their own views on the two unconscious forms is yet to be seen.

"That in itself is a falsehood, a misinformation, Frost Born," the last remaining snow demon - and by last, Stephen truly _meant_ the last - cut in from where he had been keeping his distance and had been restrained so far by Thor and Carol on each of his sides.

His name was Hikupakularmadiramis but he preferred Hiku to all of them accidentally butchering his name in an attempt to pronounce it and he had been the leader of his people before the 'enemies from beyond the veil' attacked their home world. He brought with him many grave, horrifying news, one of which being that the supposedly 'legendary' Empirikul were not so much legends as one would have preferred. A race of robots created to serve their leader, the Imperator, in his mad quest to destroy all of the world's magic just because his parents were sacrificed by a mad, blood-lustful sect of magicians, the Blood Monks who had been his first victims, when he was but a babe, the Empirikul have divested over a hundred dimensions so far and the snow demons had been a rather recent one. Not only that, but for their strength, size and scary appearances, the Imperator had had Hiku mind controlled by a device Stephen had accidentally destroyed, hidden inside the white chest plate the other had worn as a sign of his office as leader. As such, Hiku had led his race to invade countless others, killing millions of random magical species in whatever new universe that the Imperator sent him. Snow demons were bound by their oaths even more tightly and strictly than the sorcerers of Earth, so they had to follow no matter what.

Now, all of his people were slain and he, finally free, was alone and in Stephen's debt. Saving his life was, apparently, not enough to repay the debt, as freedom is more important than life. Instead, he has sworn himself to Stephen's service and refused any denial of such. He said he had no purpose anymore, as all he had known and loved was gone. He needed something to live for. For all that they were snow 'demons', they were bound by emotions and Hiku will cease to exist as anything more than a wall decoration if he has no purpose, no goal, no precious people to hold dear and to protect.

Stephen really didn't have the strength right now to argue with him and Wong seemed to be rather eager to have such an ally on their side so he had let it be. Protesting would only waste time.

"How do you mean?" Loki asked, confused, as all sorcerers in the room were, by that declaration. Even Aidna, the most knowledgeable about dragon and snow/ice magic of them all, had agreed that a frozen anything is extremely difficult to heal and actually requires the caster of the magic to remove it but a frozen heart is deadly. Why does that sound so familiar and cliche, the former neurosurgeon idly wonders to himself.

"One does not even need the caster for a frozen heart to be cured. The process is dangerous and will have eternal consequences, but a way exists, as long as there are those who are willing-"

"There's plenty of those," Peter, usually almost painfully polite, points out from where he looks ready to break down the wall separating everyone from Tony and Elsa, mostly because the two demand to be close but Elsa seems to be executing some serious freezing powers in there. No one could enter that room and stay in there for longer than a couple of minutes without getting some serious frostbite.

"And _powerful_ enough to execute the ritual." As one, everyone gathered outside of the genius engineer's room turned their gaze in his direction. Stephen had no reason to be surprised, so he wasn't. Two thirds of the present company had seen him all but tear asunder the wards and seals protecting the Temple of Ahtohallan when he had thought he had failed Tony before.

"What do I need to do?"

"And how come none of us has ever heard of this ritual that might save someone with a frozen heart?" Wong asked a second after him and Hikupakularmadiramis gave a sad, almost condescending smile.

"Because so far only Star Born have survived even remotely long enough to be a part of the ritual, let alone survive its success. This ritual is risky, for both parties involved. are you certain, Sorcerer Supreme of Earth, that you would take such a risk for the Star Born?"

"I wouldn't be asking what I needed to do if I wasn't absolutely certain," Stephen all but snapped, finally getting out of the funk he had fallen into ever since they'd set Tony down on a bed and realized there was nothing any of them could do for the brilliant, wonderful - _dying_ \- man. "Besides, my own feelings on the matter aside, this is pretty much necessary. We don't know whether Elsa is the last of her kind. If it turns out that she is and she dies when we could have done something to prevent it, the death of existence itself is on us. I already have enough guilt and remorse, thank you, and Tony is precious to me. So just tell me what to do and don't waste any more time. I believe it to be of essence."

Which was an understatement in several different areas. Two days have passed since Tony and Elsa fell. And only after two days had anyone been able to approach them at all as Elsa seemed to be trying to start a new ice age in the room she and Tony were currently residing. They had put them down and she had covered the whole room in ice. Now, with the horrifying truth that her power was faltering due to Tony's _life_ doing the same, they were all pretty much aware that every second wasted was one second closer to disaster.

And that's not even _mentioning_ the shit storm going on in the outside world!

Elsa wasn't just trying to start a new ice age in the room she and Tony were resting. The second her power had started faltering within the hospital room was the second that the entirety of Earth was hit with a snow storm the likes of which had not been seen in millions of years. The entirety of the Sahara was covered in snow, the ice covering the ocean was actually strong enough that a highway road could be made between the continents and every single active volcano in the world has had its very much scorching hot, melting, liquid lava turned into fucking _ice_ in seconds. Just a couple of hours ago more bad news came from Wakanda, also covered in snow, stating that the Earth's core temperature was slowly but steadily dropping. Scientists all over the world have confirmed that no heating can keep a place warm for longer than a few hours and the winds mostly put out whatever fire was lit.

_'At least this will help with global warming,'_ Stephen thought dryly as he arched an eyebrow at the creature that had sworn his alliance to him.

Hikupakularmadiramis only nodded. "My people calls the companions of dragons Star Born," he started explaining. "For their souls shine as brightly as the lights of the universe themselves and run just as hot, especially after they awaken their dragons. Usually, extended exposure to one of them is rather dangerous to our health. However, even one or two of my people have been Star Born and we have had dragons in our midst. Once, one of my elders has told me, during a ceremonial spar with a potential life partner, a Star Born's heart was pierced with ice of magic and their heart was frozen in much a similar manner to your friend. Their dragon was not in any way harmed in the process, but the Star Born's slowly dwindling and fading life force made them weaker in moments. The dragon's own internal fire kept them both alive for days as our people tried, tirelessly, futilely, to find a cure. The dragon eventually told them to stop looking. _Your magic runs cold_, the dragon had said. _Nothing you do for my hatcher will help_, the reassured, as though comforting them in their helplessness. _My summoner's intended, even if they were to run as hot as the Mages of the Seven Suns, is not powerful enough. It is our time_. The dragon then took the Star Born and flew away. Days later, the Star Born's intended found them far in the highest mountain, encased in ice together, so not even death nor time shall do them part."

"I don't really see how this story is helping," Scott Lang muttered uncomfortably but Stephen ignored him.

"Basically, the dragon from your story said that to cure a person dying of a frozen heart, all that is needed is a powerful enough sorcerer who's not naturally inclined towards the element that was causing death to creep in?"

"Quite so," Hiku nodded.

"Okay, but you mentioned a ritual. What do we need for it? Any special ingredients? Symbols drawn? Blood sacrifices? Poison drinking? Summoning of ancestral or natural spirits?" Stephen listed off, wanting to start with the solution as quickly as possible. They had already lost two days due to what seemed to be a defensive mechanism. Elsa had made it so that Tony shouldn't be affected by the cold if it had not been for the little magical ice shard to the heart incident. That was still something they ought to discuss with Elsa as to how it was even _possible_ for _any_ weapon made to break through her magical barriers.

"Nothing of the sort," the snow demon assured casually. "All you must do is desire to share the energy inside the very essence of your soul with the Star Born so it can ignite the fire being connected to a dragon affords him and usually burns eternal. You shall be exhausted once you finish and you will need time to process binding your soul to another-"

"Whoa, hold it right there, mister!" Barnes interjected, eyes wide and a bit panicked. Stephen could sort of agree and this was happening to _him_ an will affect _him_ directly in the near and distant future from now onward! "You never said anything about binding their souls together! I might not be an expert on Tony Stark but I'm pretty sure that he'd have a few objections to that!"

"Doesn't he already share his soul with the dragon?" Romanov asked pointedly while everyone else ignored Maximoff's muttering under her own chin that the man in question probably didn't even have a soul, despite the evidence to the contrary.

"Yes, but that is a connection dragons and their hatchers are _born_ with, _created_ with. They just officially establish it when the dragon awakens and is hatched into the world," Aidna explains, sounding both tired and intrigued. "The Northuldra don't have much knowledge or records of it, but we do know that dragon hatchers can, indeed, form soul bonds with other people and creatures. They'll just never be as deep or as intimate as the one shared with their dragon."

"The solution is at the very least doable and sounds like a course of action we should take," Wong agreed in his own way, which was already more than enough for Stephen to know this will be happening.

A soul bond with a person meant to stay alive as long as a dragon is doesn't really bring all that much new to his table. The Sorcerer Supreme is expected to stay alive for centuries, if need be, until a sorcerer of equal or greater strength and the right disposition is born to pass on the title. Given that no sorcerer had ever done half of the things Stephen has in the past few years, ever since he used the Eye of Agamotto to trap Dormammu in a time loop to make him submit to his request, he was probably looking forward to a very long wait indeed. The Temple of Antohallan thing kind or really set the bar at a completely new level.

"Is there any incantation I should say? A spell to cast? Special requirements to be met?"

"Hold on, Strange," Rogers was quick to protest, seemingly thinking Stephen had ever given a fuck as to his opinion on any matter, let alone one as important as this. He'd do anything to keep Tony safe even if Elsa wasn't involved, but Rogers seems to be forgetting that Tony dying meant Elsa dying and if she's indeed the last dragon, as they fear, then the multiverse will die, too. "You can't just-"

"Oh, but I _can_, Mr Rogers," Strange cut him off at the knees, giving him his most terrifying smile that used to make nurses cry and interns quake in fear and is used nowadays to make Masters of the Mystic Arts quiver in anticipation and the apprentices vibrate in excitement as to what new spell he had deigned to show them or what new training regimen he had come up with to make them stronger. The blond supersoldier actually blanched back. The memory of the Temple of Ahtohallan must still be fresh enough for him to be smart enough to step back. "Perks of being the Sorcerer Supreme. Tony and Elsa are under _my _jurisdiction and it is up to me to ensure their safety and continued living. So back off or you can ask Loki what it's like to perpetually fall for twenty minutes, though I might forget about you longer."

"Did you just _threaten _him?" Maximoff asked in a dangerous voice, seeming to have been less intelligent than Rogers - there's a shocker - and stepping forward as though challenging him.

"Ms Maximoff, back the _fuck _off and let the man do his fucking job!" Fury, who took no shit from no one and was definitely worried about Tony no matter how much he would deny it, snapped, glaring at the young woman. "Or you will be benched until further notice."

"You need me," the Sokovian countered with a snort, giving them all a very unpleasant smile. Stephen wasn't even surprised when Wong, who took even less shit than Fury, cast a quick spell that completely bound the Scarlet Witch's powers in a spell every Master of the Mystic Arts must learn in order to be able to discipline others.

"We really don't," Carol, her fellow Infinity Stone powered individual, said with a raised eyebrow when the girl started shrieking. Stephen couldn't listen to her so he just went by the way of dealing with Loki and closed the perpetual, endless portal behind her.

"So, you were saying?" He asked Hiku pointedly, signaling that any further distractions will be dealt with similarly.

"There is no need for additional outside interference. Just let your energy enter his body and find his core, intertwine your magics and souls and lend him the power he needs to stabilize his core as the ice melts. By morning, the Star Born will be awake and about."

"Any last comments or objections before I go in, then?" Stephen asked the room at large, eyes lingering on Tony's dearest and nearest.

Pepper just shook her head. "Just keep him alive."

"And be prepared for a lot of bad soulmate puns, Doc," Rhodes said with a grim smile. Apparently, he was perfectly okay to leave all the raging at a lack of choice in the matter to Tony _when _he woke up. "And maybe a bit of pouting and yelling. Just weather it through and you'll be fine."

"Bring him back," was all Nebula said (commanded) and Vision sent him a grateful, trusting smile. Peter just looked extremely hopeful between a worried but faithful Happy and May. Carol and Hope said nothing but they clearly expected Stephen to bring shellhead back. Barnes and Lang gave their support in the form of a thumbs up and Wong, when he looked at him, gave him a firm nod.

"Wish me luck," was the last thing Stephen said before stepping into the room and bracing himself for the colder temperatures in there. It wasn't even bellow zero degrees Celsius but it wasn't exactly pleasant, either, especially as he needed skin on skin contact for this to work. He looked to the faithful Cloak around his shoulders and gave it a nod. "Hold me up if I fall over." It gave a nod with its collar and Stephen stepped up to Tony's bed, took off his gloves and put one shaky hand under Tony's shirt and right over his heart, channeling magic from the core of his being, through his arm, down to his hand and into Tony's own through the genius' chest.

Which was how he found his mind being pulled under, falling, into endless darkness and freezing shadows, no wind, no air, no resistance until he slammed into a hard, iced over ground painfully enough that he actually wondered whether his body will have evidence of the crash despite this being an astral experience at best. A cursory look around gave him surprisingly quick results.

There, not too far away, just a bit out of hearing distance unless he were to yell, curled up in on himself, was a man Stephen would recognize even blind and deaf.

_Tony_.


	18. Chapter 18

**Show Yourself Into The Unknown**

**Summary: The one where Thanos is dead, Tony has weird dreams instead of nightmares, the Avengers watch dubious Disney movies and mystical creatures are more than real. Oh, and the Cloak totally ships it.**

Finding Tony was apparently the easier part of this particular quest Stephen found himself on. The engineer's very soul, bright and burning and lovely, was right there in front of him, within reaching distance which Stephen was quick to cross, but the man was as catatonic here as he was in the outside world.

Or at least he appeared to be at first glance.

In truth, the genius was sat in front of a huge ice mirror floating in a crystal clear lake that seemed to be reflecting all of creation itself, watching scenes that unfolded in said mirror and Stephen himself was fascinated by what he saw. This was clearly a harmless experience, or at least he hoped so, as it seemed to be connected to the man's nature as a dragon summoner and was probably also experience meant only for him and not any outsiders. But, then again, Stephen was hardly an outsider now. He was so deep inside Tony's soul that, when he looked around, he could see various things that represented this man - a huge room, half laboratory, half meeting room, half a huge, stylish greeting room in a fancy mansion with a fireplace and a grand piano, robots and Iron Man suits all around, a cave in the distance, a bunker much too close for Stephen's liking, an open sky above their heads showing the grand universe and an all too familiar planet that was not their own - if all covered in ice, probably as a result of the frozen heart.

He could have only gotten this deep inside if the connection between them had slammed straight into existence faster than either of them could have expected. That should have been a relief, given how dangerous soul bonding attempts could turn out to be, but he couldn't _feel_ the bond at all and that honestly bothered him. He was no expert but he _had_ researched the subject in his studies as soon as he realized that souls were actual things and not constructs of imagination meant to give people false hopes and platitudes for their brief existence and inevitable death. A soul bond like theirs, young and new as it might be, should have been obvious to his senses the second it had formed.

He did not like the implications behind the lack of feeling.

He could guess the most likely cause, though. The ice was obviously still very much present in Tony's heart and now that he was here, it was up to Stephen to melt it away, to stoke the flames awakened by the man's connection with Elsa, though he could find no evidence of it. Probably only Tony himself knew where to find it, which meant he had to wake him up from whatever trance that ice mirror in the puddle had put him in to. Probably not the safest thing to do at a time like this, but Stephen was desperate and the time to save Tony was limited.

With no more time wasted, Stephen walked over to his new soulmate and boldly grabbed Tony's shoulder, intent on shaking him awake, but the second he touched the brunet, he got a glimpse into what the mirror was showing him. Stephen had never seen so many beautiful and so many horrendous things in one place at once except that time when the Ancient One had sent him careening through the multiverse to make a believer out of him.

_A beautiful landscape, beyond his or even the best writers or artists imagination, lay before him. Mountaintops and hills and meadows and forests and seas and lakes and rivers, all made of pure, untouched magic. Untouched by the world, millennia old, ancient for even time itself. Hundreds of dragons within immediate sight, of all shapes and colors and elements and natures and magics._

_A war, bloody and destructive, bodies everywhere. Magic lashing out. Dead and dying, living and surviving. A dragon roars in the distance, defiant, threatening, warning. Another roar elsewhere, dying, grieving, pained. A hue dragon falls right out of the sky, a spear through their heart, all but dead and yet in their last dying breaths protecting the person who had been on their back, breaking their magnificent wings in the landing just so the person could survive. The person's own cry of anguish when the dragon's soul fire is extinguished is haunting. The warrior that comes up behind them is familiar and Stephen blanches as he recognizes an _Asgadian_, beheading the grieving summoner._

_Death seems to have been a mercy._

_The landscape from before appears again, dissolving, falling apart. Polluted. Dragons don't hesitate still to go in and out, saving the rest of existence from itself at the cost of their own home. Stephen mourns the perfection that is ruined._

_He mourns as he watches more and more dragons be killed throughout the multiverse. Why were they doing that? Dragons were _peaceful_! Is this Tony's fate?_

_'I won't allow that,'_ he promises to himself as he jerks his hand away. Tony had been _his _to protect from the moment he had set the man up to sacrifice himself for the universe and now was not the time that will change. If anything, his affections for the genius only made him all the more determined now to allow anyone to ever hurt neither Tony nor Elsa. _'I just need to get us out of here to drive that message home to anyone who might try.'_

Easier said than done when it will be required for him to touch Tony again to wake him up out of the trance. Strange idly wondered if the man will remember all that the ice mirror is showing him when he wakes up or if it will all remain inside of his subconsciousness like an instinct to help him survive. He sighed and braced himself, thinking a burst of magic will be enough to shock the man awake and he touched Tony's shoulder again -

_"Kill them!" A vaguely familiar figure shouted, ordered, pointing at the five distinctly dragon figures flying in the sky, defensively guarding the sixth making a break for it towards a rift in reality in the distance. "Kill them all! Let none of them escape!" The figure that was shouting the orders Stephen quickly recognized as the man that had downed Elsa and Tony in their last battle, meaning that these were Empirikul and that man was the Imperator and Elsa and Tony had not been the only dragon/summoner pair he had faced._

_The robots, the _Eyebots _something whispered in his mind, went after the dragons. The five met them head on, magic and general fire or whatever other element they controlled, not letting even a single robot through. There were various beings fighting with them, on their backs or on their heads, wielding different weapons and using magic much the same as their partner dragons. The dragon in the distance vaguely reminded him of Elsa and it carried a _human _clinging to its neck. They might have been free of the Eyebots but the _Witchfinder Wolves_ chased after them. Horrible, terrifying things, though they could not fly. The human, a middle aged woman if Stephen had to guess from the looks of her though she could be thousands of years old already, kept firing magical arrows at them to slow them down, probably because the gate was low enough that the Wolves would be able to reach._

_He realized that this was all planned. This, whenever it had happened, had been planned. One dragon, no doubt Elsa's mother, would escape the carnage on this foreign battlefield at the cost of five others and no doubt their summoners. It had been a calculated risk, a desperate move that meant life or death for the _multiverse_._

_"The Imperator will not listen," a voice whispered like a recent memory. "He has orchestrated hunts on our kind for years now. We have tried reason and reason will not succeed. War is not for us. Flee we must, to _survive_. You are the last carrying dragon. Your egg must survive. Take it away. Hide it. Earth has a Sorcerer Supreme. They will be obliged to protect your child. The summoner will come in due time. Run! There is no time left to loose!"_

_The scene changed the second that the dragon made its way through the portal. Stephen could not even recognize the forest surrounding the Temple of Ahtohallan. The temple that later became the above mentioned glacier hidden Temple stood before him, visible for all. Old Northuldra sorcerers led the dragon and summoner inside and stood to the side, watching in awe as the dragoness drilled a hole into what could have been the center of the Earth with her magic, only to disappear inside moments later. Stephen suspected only Tony will ever know what the Well looked like at the bottom, where Elsa had been hidden for centuries. When the party existed the now magically protected Temple, the Ancient One stood in wait, grim expression on her face. Stephen's heart ached at the sight of her._

_"You have brought danger to my planet."_

_"We have brought salvation, to you and to the multiverse, Sorcerer Supreme," Elsa's mother's summoner stated gravely, daring the bald woman to tell them to leave. "She is the last dragon."_

_"You and your companion live still," the Ancient One pointed out but Elsa's mother shook her head._

_"I have spent the last of my magic and strength to transfer what is left of Ahtohallan into a space where my hatchling will one day be able to access it with their Ib. I shall die in a matter of hours. I refuse to do so here, so close to my egg, where anyone can track it."_

_"And I refuse to let Idina die by her lonesome," the woman at her side insisted and rejected any of Idina's attempted protests. "I have brought you into this world and I refuse to let you depart from it in solitude. Not when my soul will reach for you and you will not allow it to be there to comfort you."_

_"So be it, Ayako." The summoner smiled sadly and mounted her dragon. Idina regarded the Sorcerer Supreme before her. "This place is outside of your jurisdiction. Heed my words. Should you try to enter it, not even your dark contract will keep you shielded." Then she flapped her wings once to get in the air, twice to gain altitude and on the third beat of her wings, they were gone in a flash of stars and galaxies and dimensions. Leaving Earth far behind, safe._

_And in her wake, a glacier formed and covered the temple, going right to the very edge of the cliff behind it. A glacier that no force of nature could create as it had no source in mountain river water or any sort of slope to create the build up of ice._

Stephen was snapped back into Tony's head as soon as the vision ended and the ice mirror cracked, shattering, the shards spreading around the little pool, just floating there oh so innocently. He was breathing hard but he barely took note that the surrounding area was melting, almost no ice left. It was starting to hum with life as though it had never been frozen still in the first place. The current Sorcerer Supreme couldn't help but marvel at the downright freaky string of events that had happened in what felt like seconds, instances.

~Good morning, Sir,~ a voice, British and vaguely familiar if more robotic than he was used to, said out of thin air, startling Strange into making a couple of mandala shields in defense, taking up a protective stance in front of the still crouching Tony, looking for the enemy. He blinked when all he found was a big orb of glowing strings of code, the colors of which actually nearly matched the color of standard Eldritch spells. It was just floating there, harmless, welcoming. A memory, perhaps. ~It is currently Friday, January 31, 2020, two a.m. You are inside of the Avengers Compound, in the medical wing. The current weather outside is a strong blizzard and snow, wind speed at 60 mph and freezing temperatures of minus twenty degrees Celsius. Colonel Rhodes is in the waiting room with Ms Potts, Mr Hogan, Mrs Parker, Mr Parker, Major Danvers, Ms Nebula, Mr Vision, Mr Wong and Director Fury. Mr Keener and his family have relocated to the safe house outside of their town, as per your instructions in case of occasions like these. Agent Coulson is still 'playing possum' in New SHIELD HQ. Dr Wu and Dr Cho have relocated to the safe houses you have constructed for them in case of emergencies. Doctor Strange and Elsa are currently in the room with you.~

"I- What?"

"That's JARVIS," a new voice said and this time when Stephen whirled around, he found a bald man with thin glasses dressed like a college professor smiling at him in an easy manner. "He runs this place."

"Who are you? How did you get in here?" Stephen asked, suspicious. This was Tony's mind. It's quite possible both these beings were constructs of his mind but only sorcerers of great skill and discipline may create such 'guides' or defenses in their own minds. Tony, despite having been gifted with _some_ degree of magic upon awakening Elsa, was no sorcerer. He had no training, he didn't even know the basics beyond the spells Stephen sometimes ranted to him about! So while the orange mass might be right at home in here, this man could easily be an intruder.

"Don't you recognize me, Doctor Stephen Vincent Strange?" The man asked curiously, smile never leaving his face. "Though, I prefer to keep this form when keeping a tie with this human. He is rather interesting, is he not? A human, so fragile, so breakable, and yet all of existence rests on his survival, on his life. He'd proven we have chosen correctly once already, has he not, Stonekeeper? My sibling has been right to choose you. You have chosen our champion well."

"Soul Stone," Stephen realized with a shudder when the Stone dropped all pretenses and the energy of it registered in his magical senses. "What are you doing here?"

"Usually, I have no say nor glimpse into a dragon Ib's soul. It was an opportunity not to be missed. I created a place for me here so I may linger and watch over a soul so bright it can only be bonded with a dragon's. It drew my attention and roused my curiosity when I felt you, who has a connection with my sibling Time, enter here_._"

"Am I to expect the Mind Stone to be here as well? And what form did you take? I don't recognize this man."

The Soul Stone looked down at the body it had taken before waving him off, still with that easy smile in place. "Mind is not here. Only I am. I like to keep tabs of the only soul in centuries that did not belong to me. Anthony is quite an interesting individual."

"The form," he prompted, perhaps a bit too impatiently given that this was the manifestation of one of the creating forces of the universe. Then again, he was in the mind of one of the last co-protectors of the _multiverse_ where the Soul Stone should _not_ be. But his soul belong to it, in a way, even if Tony's did not. It must have come to check out an occurrence as rare as dragons these days, meaning next to extinct.

"Ho Yinsen. Anthony met him, hm, twelve years ago, give or take a few months." Stephen froze upon hearing the name. He knew it. Of course he knew it. He was the first assistant in creating an Iron Man armor. A friend in a cave that is the reason Tony Stark survived Afghanistan. The reason why Tony became the man he is today, guilt and gratitude alike. "Anthony likes him. Finds comfort in his presence. Him and JARVIS, but JARVIS is out of my domain so I take this form. You have a question, Stonekeeper. AN important one. Ask it."

"How do I wake him up?" He took the offered assistance immediately. His distrust of this infinite power is not more important than Tony's life. "Surely you know the predicament we find ourselves in. I need to wake him up. How do I do that? And why can't I feel our bond?"

"You love him. Love is _fire_, which is why only those who love as fiercely as dragons can summon them from their eggs." The Soul Stone pouted in Yinsen's form and Stephen wasn't even sure if that should be weird. "The best souls are always out of my reach. I never get to properly bask in their warmth, in the glory of their precious existence. Through you, though, I am now given a new, not-to-be-missed opportunity."

"You're still not answering my question," Stephen bit out, annoyed. The Ancient One would probably wack him over the head with one of her oh so beloved fans if she saw him now. If he ever tells Wong he did this, the man will probably do it with one of his thickest, hardest books. Traitor.

"But I did. You are his soulmate. And you love him. The bond is in place. Yet you do not take advantage of it to achieve that which you wish." When he sent the Stone a deadpan look, it actually rolled its eyes at him. He wondered if it had taken a form just so it could do that. Weirdo. "You are a soulmate to a dragon's Ib. They are those who love as fiercely as a dragon. What does that tell you as a requirement to offset the bond properly in all planes of existence? You need to _show him_ that you love him. He is not in a state to feel as much himself as he is _now_. He's just been shown the entire history of his other soulmate's people in one setting and that is a _lot_ more history than even us Infinity Stones know of. You need to jump start him."

"I need to _what_!?"

"Kiss him, Doctor Strange. You need to kiss him." The mind construct - because that one _is_ just that - of JARVIS explained, leaving the sorcerer in question gawking. The Soul Stone sent the construct a playful air-kiss as though in gratitude.

"Yes, thank you. Do you understand now? It's not just a random person forcing a soulmate bond on a poor, unsuspecting victim of a frozen heart that can be turned into a cure. You must _care_ for the one you are trying to save. The stronger the love, the stronger the bond."

"Generally or just in the case of dragon summoners?" He asked, kind of dazed.

The form of Yinsen gave him a deadpan look. "Only dragon summoners, as you call them, can _survive_ long enough to receive any help, so yes, _generally_. Now pucker up and get out of here. You have much to do outside."

"I can't just-! Not like _that_!" He was flailing. Since when did he _flail_? _Him_, Doctor Stephen Strange? "I don't even know if he _likes me_!"

"Did I not just say that soulmate bonds can only exist between two people who care for each other?" The Soul Stone asked snappishly and Stephen snapped right back because he was so _done_ with this bullshit.

"No, you didn't!"

"Well, I did _now_, so smooch and get it over with! I want to see what happens next! This is the first time I actually get a glimpse into how a dragon-Ib-random outsider soulmate bond works! Ib usually never take a soulmate after they had hatched their dragon!"

"We're not a soup opera for you to gawk at!" He snapped even as he moved back to Tony and knelt in front of the genius, opting to focus on him and ignore as best as he can the damned Stone that shouldn't even be here in the first place.

"But I'm _bored_!"

"Then do the world some good and make more dragons. Now shoo." He sighed, wondering why this hadn't been in the job description when he had accepted the title of Sorcerer Supreme. "Well, here goes ... everything."

He dipped his head down and kissed Tony square on the mouth, hoping the man won't kill him for being so presumptuous.

The second their lips touched, the world fell out from under his knees.


	19. Chapter 19

**Show Yourself Into The Unknown**

**Summary: The one where Thanos is dead, Tony has weird dreams instead of nightmares, the Avengers watch dubious Disney movies and mystical creatures are more than real. Oh, and the Cloak totally ships it.**

When Tony first came to in three days, it was to a pair of soft, warm if slightly cracked lips pressed firmly, almost desperately against his own. Before he could panic, he felt the scratch of a familiarly shaped beard - a goatee to rival his own - and his very soul gave a reassuring hum that had him relaxing into the sensations like he was made for it. He couldn't help the little moan that slipped from his mouth nor the whine that followed seconds later when Stephen stiffened against him before swiftly drawing away. Looking at the good doctor, Tony found that the man was adorable when he blushed like that.

Who knew Doctor Strange, almighty Sorcerer Supreme, could get so flustered with a single kiss?

"Tony! You're okay!" The second thing Stark registered other than Strange was his Rhodey-bear all but barreling into a suspiciously ice-covered medical room at the Compound and nearly slipping on the ice in his haste to get to the genius, who was in a hospital bed, only much more comfortable of course. A few others followed at a safer pace so as not to end up sliding across the floor like poor Rhodey and it was all the most important people in his life.

The third thing that he noticed, though, nearly had him going straight into an anxiety attack and that was the sight of Elsa, all but iced over in her own powers, on a bed next to his, completely unresponsive and completely out of his reach even through the souls they shared - though he did notice a new sensation on his end there and he wasn't blind to how Strange nearly fell over, eyes wide like he was on the trip of his life and high as a fucking rocket. If he couldn't feel her right there, behind a thick block of, ironically, ice between them, he would have thought her dead. As it was, it was clear that whatever had put him out of commission for this long had also impacted their bond and created an interference.

"The Empurikul ... They have weapons that block magic." Those were the first words out of his mouth and he had absolutely _no_ idea where that information came from. It made everyone else stop in their fussing - or arguing, as was the case of Rogers and Barnes, the former trying to get into the room and the Winter Soldier trying, almost certainly futilely, to get it through his thick skull that he wasn't _wanted_ in there - and stare at him in confusion, worry or intrigue.

"That would make sense why Elsa, a _being of pure magic_, would lose all control and be in a state like this," Stephen said after a long pause. "Taking away magic from her even for a moment is surely a death sentence. The raging weather and storms is probably from a too quick comeback."

"That, unfortunately, means that the blizzards won't stop until Elsa awakens and stops them herself." Aidna, who had apparently been called in at some point, muses and Tony doesn't like the sounds of that.

"What's going on?"

"You don't remember?" Stephen surprised them all by asking, making everyone look at him like he was crazy. Tony had been, after all, unconscious for the past three days - yes, three; it had taken a better part of yesterday and today for whatever Strange had been doing to have any effect and for the two of them to wake up from whatever meditative or entranced state that the sorcerer had put them in.

"Should I?" The hospitalized genius asked skeptically, wondering what was going on.

"Don't you remember JARVIS explaining everything - things I really have no idea how a construct of your own mind could know with no connection to the outside world at all - in your mind space?"

"No?"

"What do you mean, 'JARVIS explaining everything'?" Romanov asked from the doorway where Bucky refused to let anyone else enter the room without Tony's explicit permission. Tony swore he'll buy the guy a cupcake. Or a cupcake maker. Or a whole damned kitchen, since the guy seemed to have a thing for baking.

"Oh~!" It took Tony a moment to realize what Stephen was talking about when the words mind space and mind construct registered, but when he did, he gave the sorcerer a sheepish smile. "Uh, yeah. Elsa helped me with that some time ago. A fail-safe in case of an anxiety attack because, for years, only JARVIS' voice could calm me down. FRIDAY's great but I'm all but conditioned for JARVIS being my turn off switch for those things after so many years and so many panic attacks averted. Elsa helped me build him up in my mind again. He's ... He's everything he's always been except he can't exist out here, you know? So he's kind of just mine and Elsa's I guess. Though I _do_ have to wonder why you know about him and why the hell you were in my mind space to begin with, Doc?" He arched an eyebrow at the man, not even trying to get into the theory behind how the magic that had created JARVIS somehow kept him in tune with the real world outside. That was some dragon magic that Tony was still trying to puzzle out. It was a nice challenge for his brain when he just needed to stop thinking about serious shit for a little while and Elsa's gift was invaluable.

He may never hear JARVIS' voice with his own ears ever again, but at least his greatest creation lived on in some semblance other than just the code making up a part of Vision's personality construct. This way, he gets to have them both.

For some strange - excuse the pun - reason, the blue dressed doctor suddenly flushed a little and it had nothing to do with the incredible smooch from earlier. "Perhaps we should push back the conversation of how you were saved from a frozen heart for later, as there are more interesting and pressing matter to discuss. Like where you aware that Infinity Stones like to drop by and check in on you in your own mind?"

"WHAT!?" More than one voice cried in outrage and shock, disbelief coloring the exclamation of surprise and making the volume raise beyond polite conversation-appropriate levels. Tony was disappointed that the noise didn't seem to rouse Elsa at all. But he knew this wasn't just a regular or even a drop dead exhausted sleep. Elsa's very core had been disturbed and she needed time to recover. Hopefully, she will be alright soon enough. He really was very worried. They had been together for barely two months and yet this shit had happened already.

"Well, more of _an_ Infinity Stone dropping by rather than all of them," Stephen corrected, eyes never straying from Tony's own. He sounded rather displeased. "The Soul Stone seems to have developed a bit of a crush on you and shamelessly utilized the opportunity granted to it by both you using the Infinity Gauntlet and our new soulmate bond to sunbathe in the warmth and light of your soul fire. Apparently, you're the only dragon summoner to have gotten a soulmate outside of their dragon or another dragon summoner. Bloody opportunist."

"Soulmate? Wha-? _Oh_." Tony idly watched as every suddenly went very, very still, their shoulders tense and bodies stiff with tension, as if waiting for him to snap. Or more probably to freak out. "So that's what this is, huh. Neat." It would explain the acute awareness of exactly _where_ Stephen was, the pull he felt from the man and how easily it was to read him all of a sudden. He probed down the line he felt connecting him to the sorcerer and smirked when the man in question gasped and flushed red. Well, that was interesting. As was the reflection of his won feelings, if a thousandfold amplified, on the sorcerer's end. "We'll talk about it later," he promised the man, figuring there were things to do. Something didn't feel quite right, after all, and he knew it was very much connected to Elsa's current state. How could it _not_ be, when she was apparently the last of her kind? "What?" He asked when he saw the flabbergasted looks everyone was giving him, though.

"You're _okay_ with this?!" Rogers, looking like a violated little old lady - or more like the old noble lady from that fourth pirate movie with Johnny Depp - all but screeched.

"Why _shouldn't_ I be? True, not the way I _would_ have liked for my feelings to come into the know but what's done is done and at least this way there's no misunderstandings, right, Doc?" If anything, Strange looked even more flabbergasted than before. Had the idiot even taken the time to check out his mind space while he had had the opportunity? If he had, he would have seen that Tony had had a brain-crush on him since the flying space doughnut and that it had only developed further after he reversed Thanos' Snap and Stephen had been with him every step of the way in his recovery and all the rebuilding efforts he had participated in to help other people cope better with the return of the world to how it used to be.

"But you didn't even give _consent_! This is a violation of your personal _rights_, Tony!"

"Yeah, I'd like to see you get through any of _them_," he waved a hand lazily to indicate his closest and dearest, _including_ Stephen, much to his apparent disbelief - they'll _really_ have to talk about this at a later date, it seemed. Blind idiot - all of whom are scarily protective and even more invested in his happiness, well-being and ultimate survival and were, quite frankly, really terrifying people. "If a decision or an action was being made that was not in my best interest. If no one else, then FRIDAY at least would start a nuclear war for me and she at least knew about my feelings for Doctor Cheekbones. This was definitely not non-con. It just happened while I was sleeping, which is a shame. Wanna give me a proper kiss now that I am awake, Houdini?" He winked for good measure and Stephen huffed, finally relaxing with a smile. That was a good start.

"So it really doesn't bother you?" Carol asked, more curious than anything. "I mean, it is quite a big deal, sharing your soul like that."

Tony snorted. "My soul was created in such a way that I would share it no matter how things turned out. You guys seem to be constantly forgetting that Elsa and I are quite literally _born soulmates_. She can't exist without me and I wouldn't be who I am if my soul wasn't in some way connected to her's. My new bond with Stephen is just in a different category, since it's a made bond and not one written into the very essence of my soul at its creation. This is nothing new to me. I may have freaked out a few months ago but I certainly won't _now_. Besides, what's there to mind or complain about being connected on a soul level with someone who seems to understand you just as deeply? I call this an improvement."

"Over what?" Wilson asked, sounding curious.

"Over my god damned life. Now, will someone _please_ tell me what's going on? Because I can tell something _is_ and it ain't anything good." When suddenly everyone in the room and just outside of it - huh, there was that snow demon boss that had turned sides at the last moment and helped them - seemed to be playing glaring hot potatoes, the billionaire sighed and turned to his most trusted source. "FRI?"

Several screens flickered into the air in front of him, each showing different things. News reports, scans from his own satellites, interviews with scientists politicians, meteorologists, military personnel, random stupid people people trying to brave the planet wide storm that threatened to throw them straight into a new ice age. People were panicking and cold. It was apparently near impossible to keep warm and the temperatures just kept dropping. Not a good sign for a planet made over 80% from water with beings consisting of more than 80% of water. Speculations were being made about the survival of flora and fauna in the wild, especially species from warmer climates.

Stark was just glad no one realized that the current danger was of a much larger scale than they realized. Like, _multiversal_. _Existence itself_ dangerous. Small mercies. He didn't like that Earth will be the first to fall if things went to shit. At least he was alive, which meant Elsa had more of a fighting chance. He just needed to find a way to help her get better, sooner rather than later. Her instability seems to be rubbing off on the rest of the world. Just fan_fucking_tastic.

"Well, this is a bit not good. Any ideas how to help Elsa?" He asked, looking up at all of their magic experts in the room, from Wong to Aidna to Loki and Thor to their new snow demon friend and finally to Stephen. He may be the dragon summoner here but he was next to clueless on how to care for his dragon in moments of magical instability. Mostly because such occurrences were so rare they might as well be nonexistent so not even Ahtohallan had much recall of- "Ahtohallan!" He exclaimed in an Eureka moment, startling Pepper and Rhodey into jumping away from his bed, which worked fine for him as they also got out of his way and left him a straight path for Elsa. His first step was a bit wobbly but Stephen was there for the next, supporting him even as his hands shook with the effort. Peter was on his other side in a second, taking most of his weight with ease and taking him over to the berth where Elsa had encased herself in ice as though to protect herself from the world.

"You should take it easy," Nebula threatened/advised as she and Vision came to hover by, if not literally this time around, in case he needed to be put back to the bed.

"Yeah, maybe later. I know how to help Elsa and I need to go back to the Temple of Ahtohallan so chop chop."

"The weather conditions there would kill even me, Stark, as it is now," Loki warned, pushing the former rouge Avengers out of the way.

"Yeah, well, the cold doesn't bother _me_," he dismissed and shook off the hands holding him up as soon as he felt steady enough on his own feet. He reached out a hand to pick up Elsa only to have it snatched away by Nebula.

"Don't. It froze my metal arm, it shattered under the cold and I had to replace it." Now that his attention was drawn to that little tidbit, he could see that Nebula's arm was, indeed, not the alien technology she usually used but a replacement she and FRIDAY must have made together out of his nanites, as it was silver, red and gold.

"Not to mention that the cold very much _does_ bother you, Stark," Barton pipped in, sounding the slightest bit worried. "Your heart was frozen. A bit cliche, considering your love for the movie and the origin of Elsa's name, but it happened. You're not as invulnerable to the cold as you had thought. Just like in Frozen 2."

"What, are you telling me only a kiss of true love could save me? Please, that's just Disney levels of bullshit right there." He sent a brief apologetic smile to May when she cleared her throat in reminder to not use such language around Peter and then sent Rogers a glare before the man could actual make the reprimand he used to tease him about.

"Well, Stephen _did_ have to kiss you," Wong pointed out rather pointedly.

"The Soul Stone said it was necessary," the doctor added and Tony couldn't help. He snickered. (He also resolved to once venture deep into his mind and find the Soul Stone and make friend with it. It clearly had a sense of humor he would appreciate.) Stephen's face went deadpan. "It wasn't necessary."

"Nope."

A murderous expression actually settled over the man's features. "Excuse me while I plan the murder of an infinite source of power and one of the six elements of creation of the universe."

"Oh, yeah. The Soul Stone and I are _definitely_ becoming drinking buddies." Then he ignored every other attempt to stop him and finally touched Elsa. Or rather, the ice around her. Which immediately melted upon his touch, much to everyone's shock. Why they continued being shocked was beyond him, though, as they should know by now that his relationship with Elsa and magic and existence in general is _way_ different from their own. Besides, Elsa had no reason to protect herself from _him_. They were two separate parts of a single soul meant to live in two different bodies and yet be connected in their own way.

"We're not letting you go back out there when you just woke up, Tony," Fury called as a command as he stormed into the room and the other sorcerers nodded. Tony nodded back, easily scooping up Elsa into his arms and tucking her against his chest. He understood they worried but it was unnecessary.

"Okay, that's fair." It's not like he _needs_ them to, after all.

More than one jaw dropped unceremoniously onto the floor when he waved his hand almost dismissively and magic sparked in the air, creating a rift in space, leading straight to the entrance to the Temple of Ahtohallan, which, of course, looked none the worse for ware despite the ice that should have accumulated on the glacier hiding it in such weather. Then again, the glacier was _magic_. All in all, the cold hadn't done anything to the place and his path was clear.

He looked over his shoulder at all the gawking faces and smirked. People _really_ needed to stop underestimating him. He was Tony fucking Stark. Exceeding expectations and breaking laws and limitations of science and human logical thinking is, unfortunately, what he did best, be it with his own brain or with his impossible survival of supposedly unsurvivable situations. Or with his solutions for supposedly impossible problems. _Fuck_ impossible.

Besides, magic wasn't all that hard. Not for a dragon's Ib, who shares their dragon's instinctual control of magic, which was practically their life blood. Elsa might be out of commission but Tony sure as hell wasn't. If he knew how, he would have tried to help her on her own but he was new to this so Ahtohallan it was. He was pretty sure one of the spirits of Elsa's ancestors will help.

Without further ado, he stepped through and ran for the Temple, not even looking back to see if anyone was following.

Explanations can come later, as well as the inevitable scolding for his reckless behavior.

_Elsa_ needed him _now_.


	20. Chapter 20

**Show Yourself Into The Unknown**

**Summary: The one where Thanos is dead, Tony has weird dreams instead of nightmares, the Avengers watch dubious Disney movies and mystical creatures are more than real. Oh, and the Cloak totally ships it.**

The temperature within the Temple, while cold on a normal day, was actually a lot warmer now than outside, even though the temperature change didn't mean much to Tony. Elsa's magic may have accidentally struck and harmed him before, nearly indeed freezing his heart in a twist of irony fate should really have grown out of playing with, but that was due to loss of control when her magic was forced to stop for a moment and the immediate rush back had also had a lashing out. Other than that one instance, Elsa's promise that cold will never bother him again stayed true.

He just appreciated that the violent winds weren't whipping him anymore.

The Northuldra warriors in charge of keeping guard today were all huddled around the fire wolf elemental spirit when he got into the main chamber and rushed to the Well, their half-made bows of respect stopping short and worry freezing - not the best choice of words, but appropriate all the same - their movements the second they spotted the unwell dragon in his arms. Tony didn't so much as spare them a glance, instead running straight to the Well and leaping down without hesitation. The fall was so familiar by now that it didn't even feel all that long this time around. It felt like it was only seconds before he found himself on the icy floor, running past the ice boulders and into the ice 'forest' until he was at the altar where Elsa's egg had once been.

This is where he came upon his first problem. He had no idea how to summon any of the spirits or how to get into Ahtohallan - or whatever memory and energy of it that was left, the knowledge hoarded by countless dragons since they lost their home world but continued living elsewhere - to search for a cure for his partner.

"Hello? Anybody there!? I really need your help!" His voice echoed off of the surrounding ice, be it pillars or boulders, but no answer came. He ran a hand through his hair in frustration and tried to think beyond his worry for Elsa and his panic for Earth, because an ice age will _definitely _be bad for their planet right now. "The last of your kind is _dying_ and I don't know how to help! You've kept us silly mortals alive and our reality intact for billions of years! Are you seriously going to let it all go to shit _now_!?"

But there is no answer. Unlike the times he has been down here in his dreams or when he had finally jumped into the Well to find Elsa and bring her into the world, the place felt dead. The magic was still and almost stale, as one would expect the air to be in a tomb. The thought alone makes him shiver, a cold feeling seeping into his very bones that was far worse than anything space or Siberia could ever accomplish. This had been Elsa's cradle for centuries, waiting for him to be born and to finally come to her when the time was right and the universe would allow them to be together. Now, he fears this will be her final resting place as well and it would be because he had failed as her summoner.

"Please!" He pleads, begs, his voice echoing in the space that usually looked so beautiful and breathtaking. Now, it looks haunted, like something out of a horror movie. A fantastic place of otherworldly beauty that will suffocate you.

It is so very lonely.

"I don't know what to do," Tony whispers, though whether it was to himself or to the Well, he does not know. But it gets a reaction and that is more than he could have hoped for. A few of the pillars around the clearing for the altar vibrate and out comes the familiar vibe and melody that has Tony freezing. The pillars do it again, a faint light passing through them, so dim he would have thought he was imagining it if he hadn't been paying attention, searching for any hint, any clue as to what he could do to help Elsa. And now that he has it, he doesn't hesitate.

He puts his hands around his mouth to act as a megaphone and sings as loud as he can while still maintaining the pleasant sound. The song that Elsa first hummed to him, before he even properly visited her in his dreams, the tune that Ahtohallan itself had sang back at them when he had been reaching out to her to drag her into this world out of her little comforter that was her egg. He has not had the time to ask Aidna just how much the Northuldra tribe has actually influenced the information that Disney got for their princess movie, if the songs were made as they are under their influence or not, but one thing he knew since this whole mess - consciously - started was that Frozen and Frozen 2 hid many answers to a lot of his questions.

As his voice echoed through the cavern-like bottom of the Well, the ice and its magic responded, lighting up the place in a semblance similar to how it usually is. It was still too dim but he figured that might be because Elsa was not well and the world was slowly tearing itself apart for it. The first thing to go would, obviously,be magic itself and what used to be a ritual basin had been turned with pure magic into a practically bottomless well that hid the last remains of what used to be a world far removed from the rest of existence, a world made of pure, unadulterated magic. This place was suffering from Elsa's 'illness' the most.

_'At least it's responding,'_ he thought as he picked up Elsa again from where he had put her on the altar as he tried to seek out help. He kept singing, but the light show didn't get any stronger and that kind of pissed him off. And it pissed him off even more how many tries to get a better reaction it took him before he realized something very important.

Whether he had realized it or not, every time he sang here, searching and calling out for help, he had unconsciously channeled a little magic into the call. That is what the Well was reacting to, not his voice. _'I'll need to do something about this new power of mine _after_ I get Elsa all good and take her home.'_ Stephen was sure to help him. It was his duty not only as Sorcerer Supreme to govern all magic and help all potentially dangerous magic users stabilize and learn how to use their power, but also as Tony's new soulmate.

And that, too, was something to get used to.

Later, when he's not nearing an anxiety attack for every second that Elsa remains unresponsive.

He and Stephen can talk about it later.

Since he's been doing some smaller magical feats by some sort of instinct that came from his connection with Elsa, Tony tried to focus on her and what little he could feel from their bond when he sang next. The echoing, haunting call that had whispered to Elsa in the movie answered him back, every time a bit louder the more magic he managed to put behind his own voice. Honestly, he felt like he was playing silly game of Marko Pollo to which he only vaguely knew the rules of, specially when he realized that the voice wasn't echoing aimlessly. Rather, it came from a specific direction, which had him speed-walking as carefully as he could on the ice - someone had been an idiot to take off his nanite housing unit and he hadn't noticed or bothered to grab it before he ran through his own rift in space, so now he was walking on the ice in his _socked feet_ and there were not nearly enough resistance between them to make even a single step comfortable - as he followed it. He thought his throat will get sore or that he'll lose his voice before he finds what he's looking for, but thankfully, that is not the case by the time he finds the source.

A big boulder with a cave entrance almost the size of a regular door, a staircase leading further down and here Tony had thought that there was no lower to _go_. "Dive down deep into her sound

But not too deep or you will drown." He snorted, carefully climbing down the steps. "Might as well. The world is already going to shit so gambling it won't make much of a difference if this is the only way to help Elsa." The staircase is long and spiraling and the ice around him is monotonous and mostly see-through enough for him to make out the infinite darkness that always lurks underneath his feet when he walks on the level of Elsa's altar. He doesn't understand why he's going further down when he clearly remembers being lifted up, beyond the veil of chilling darkness to enter the ghost memory of Ahtohallan, but he trusts the Well and the spirits that seem to cling to it.

Elsa started shaking by the point the stairs stopped spiraling and they were exiting the pillar made around it, opening up a view to a river of blue flames likes Elsa's, of all things, the undercurrents closer to the bottom red and scorching. How the two contrasting elements existed in such a tangle, he didn't understand, but there was an interesting humming coming from the fiery river. It was a new sound, nothing from the movies, which made him hesitate a bit before he remembered that there were simply things in this world meant to stay between dragons and their Ib. Elsa's shaking was good, at least, as this was the firs reaction she'd had _at all_ since they were struck down. Tony couldn't help but sigh in relief even as he continued to carefully make his way down the stairs.

When he stepped off of the last ones, he felt his feet pricked through his socks by many sharp points. Looking down, he saw that the banks of the river were covered in numerous, countless breathtakingly beautiful crystals that reflected the light in the most intriguing of ways, lighting up the place even better than the forest of pillars did upstairs. This level, al least, didn't seem to be as affected by Elsa's condition as the rest of the Well was. Looking up to where the staircase was hidden inside of a huge tower of ice, Tony tried not to be disconcerted when he saw that at one point, it just disappeared into the darkness. A sight that should be expected, given that's how all of the pillars disappeared on the level of Elsa's altar, but it was still unnerving because _he had come down that way just now_.

An extra hard shiver from the dragon had him shaking off the disturbing thoughts and focusing on Elsa and on why he was here. He ignored the pain in his feet and the bloody footprints left in his wake as he walked towards the fiery river. The closer he got, the more Elsa shivered and if this was anything like hypothermia, that was a good thing. When he was besides the river and the blue flames were licking near his toes, he hesitated, unsure as to what to do.

"I wish all of this shit came with an actual fucking manual for once in my life."

"You are to submerge the dragon all the way down to the red flames and bathe with her until the fire burns you and you emerge from your own ashes like a phoenix reborn." A sudden, new, unrecognizable voice has his head snapping up from where he had been trying to glare answers out of the river, his eyes zeroing in on a person standing on the other bank. A creature whose gender he couldn't decide on, if they even had one, alien to him in every way and yet feeling like _kin_ in the most important one sat on the other side, stirring the freezing fire with a bare hand. Their skin was completely white, more so than snow, like an utter lack of color, with huge green eyebrows, a thin red mouth and small, round black eyes with pink pupils. They were dressed in something that looked a lot like armor. Not like his own armor, but maybe more like a knight's suit of armor. They wore a headdress of sorts with a face-guard, long, rabbit like ears pushed down and to the side of their face.

They were so completely, utterly different from any human or any humanoid creature he'd seen so far and yet they were _kin_.

He knew that in the very depths of his soul.

"Good," the stranger said, what must have been their version of a smile gracing the red mouth. "You are already in tune with your nature. Kin of my kin, I welcome you to the Flow of Existence." They made a flourish with the hand that had been in the fiery river, the sparks clinging to their four-fingered two knuckled hand flying and forming magical seals in the air before him. He had no idea, logically, what the seals that he saw meant, but his soul knew and he knew it was protection. Protection from drowning in the Flow. "Only we, of dragon kin, can hope to step here and not drown, not be lost in all that was, that is, that will be, that hasn't been, that isn't and that won't ever be."

He looks down at the 'water' and knows this to be true. That, however, doesn't make him any more eager to just dive right in. Not when, if he messes something up, Elsa's life was on the line and with her, the rest of everything, too.

"It is good to be cautious, my kin, as much rests on your shoulders. It was easier for me, I remember, as there had been many dragons and not much rested on mine. Our lives, intertwined as they might have been, were our own and my death did not mean his. Much has changed since then and I do believe no dragon has ever regretted it. But people are cruel, vicious and greedy and now, it all falls down to you. One last dragon with their Ib. Truly, this was not how I imagined my line will spread, how it will end."

Stark frowned, because, at first glance, none of what his new companion said made any sense. It sounded like ramblings of a senile old person, until all of what has actually been said registered in his brain. _'Easier, many dragons, intertwined lives but not deaths, change, _my_ line!'_ "You're the first Ib," he said with confidence, looking at the stranger in a new, more inquisitive light now. This creature, whatever species or gender they might be, are _kin_ because they, too, were once Ib, still _are_ Ib in death. Dragons and their Ib are connected, never to be separated, in the very essence of their souls. But dragons all once return to Ahtohallan. So their Ib must go with them.

Tony had called out to Ahtohallan for help and it had sent help in the form of the first ever Ib. Who better to help the _last_ Ib than the _first_?

"That I am." The ancient Ib confirmed, the smile widening.

"Can you help me?" He asked, desperately, but they shook their head.

"That, I cannot. I have already told you what must be done. The rest, kin of my kin, is up to you. It is up to your strength whether the currents of he Flow will overwhelm you or if you shall surface again. I shall wait for you on this side, for when you may emerge."

"Is there no other way?" He asked, even as he inched closer, hands tightening on Elsa. "I mean, you said it yourself. A lot rests on us both. We're the last ones left. If we don't make it, won't everything that the dragons have been protecting and nurturing for so long go to waste?"

"If you do not submerge, your dragon will die. If you do and don't rise from the fire, your dragon and you will die. Either option is death. The only chance you have of survival and protecting everything dear to you is to submerge, to burn and to rise from your own ashes. Phoenix are, after all, just feathery, burning dragons, no matter what differing mythologies might say." The other shrugged, sounding unconcerned. They are dead and perhaps total annihilation means nothing to the dead. "If you die or if your dragon dies and you survive their death, you will have little time to suffer from the loss, as it simply means that the time has come. You would reunite when all is lost and all is found."

"How could it possibly be _found_ if everything gets _destroyed_!?" He snapped, stopping just at the edge of the water. He knows he's glaring something fierce at the other and that it's probably rude and his mother would no doubt yank on his ear for such behavior, but he's had enough of cryptic bullshit for a lifetime a _long_ time ago, thank you.

"All that is made can be unmade and all that is unmade can be remade. You, at least, should know this." When all the genius could do is frown in confusion, the ancient Ib smiles. "Dragons have existed long before _existence _did. And they will do so again, when all that is them finds its way back to Ahtohallan and all of the purest energy of all returns to where it belongs. Dragons are, in a way no other mind but their own can understand, _eternal_. Even we Ib will never know _all_ of their secrets. Not in eons of life and not in an eternity in death. When it is right, all will be found and Ahtohallan will form again and dragons will soar in its skies and watch over a slowly forming existence. The Flow was once so much more, but not even it is eternal. One day, its time, too, shall come, young Ib. No one may know when or how. That is for Ahtohallan to know and Ahtohallan only."

"If this is the Flow of all of existence," he starts, gesturing at the fiery river. "Then why does it look like a combination of Elsa's powers?"

"I did say it used to be _more_," the other Ib pointed out. "Now, it appears as all that is left. Only dragons and their kin can come here, little Ib. We watch over the Flow. It will disrupt and dry out when there is no one left to watch over it."

"Meaning I have no choice but to take a dip. In freezing and then scorching fire. Nice."

"Fire is at the core of every dragon. It is so and it has always been so and it will always be so."

Which just sounded insane to him but he knew better than to fight these things at this point. His life was too weird and fighting it would only make it weirder, which won't help him in dealing with it. One look at Elsa, though, gave him his answer as to whether he'd deal with it at all, no matter how insane. Just the proximity of the Flow seems to be doing wonders for her condition. Which also really didn't make any sense, as she was supposed to be having problems with control, but he'd long since given up on life making sense, too.

So he took a deep breath, braced himself and dived right in.

He can just hope he won't drown.


	21. Chapter 21

**Show Yourself Into The Unknown**

**Summary: The one where Thanos is dead, Tony has weird dreams instead of nightmares, the Avengers watch dubious Disney movies and mystical creatures are more than real. Oh, and the Cloak totally ships it.**

It wouldn't be inaccurate to say that the Avengers as a whole were running around like headless chickens the second Tony slipped through a damn portal of his own making, but it would be unappreciated to be stated so blandly. The panic was, after all, well warranted, given that Stark's survival was the condition for the continuation of all of existence.

Especially when, as far as they were concerned, there were so many bad omens happening outside, in the world. Like the blizzard getting stronger and the overall temperature dropping rapidly over a dozen degrees.

So, yeah, panic was warranted.

_Especially_ when all magic stopped _working_.

There was nothing they could do about it. Strange was in a fritz over it all since the second Tony had run through _his own goddamned portal_ without a second of hesitation or looking back and the thing had closed before anyone could even fully register what had just happened. Then, seconds later, an already bad, hopeless situation got even worse and while no one wanted to think about what that might imply, they were very well aware of what it meant.

Both thankfully and unfortunately, they didn't have all that much time to ponder it, as the new development for the worse meant the world needed them more than ever. Everyone that could go out - which meant none of the sorcerers, Asgardians and anyone else dependent on magic - had boarded the sturdiest jets and ground vehicles they had at their disposal and headed out to save people from buildings collapsing under the weight of the snow and the strength of the wind. There was a lot to do and world leaders from all over were calling the Compound but without access to either the portals or the Bifrost, they were all stuck in New York and the world didn't exactly like that. As though they didn't want to go help where they could!

Wong had forbidden Stephen from even _thinking _of using magic in any capacity. They didn't even know what was causing the dimensional energies from being inaccessible to them and just letting the fool try could tear apart whatever was left of the fragile existence around them and hurry along the end of the world. And if not that, then it would certainly lead to the idiot's death from over-exhaustion. Wielding an Infinity Stone. especially the _Time Stone_, without the protections of both the Eye of Agamotto and his own powers, would be lethal and not just for _him_, but for everyone else. Even if Wong had to agree that the situation was desperate enough to warrant it.

They were at it, the rescue and evacuation in the freezing cold, all those who could take it and survive it, for barely an hour when, suddenly, it all just _stopped _and that, in many ways, was even more frightening. For if the world was raging, it meant it was still alive. Now, everything was as still and quiet as a grave and everyone in the world, aware or not of what this could possibly mean, held their breath behind their teeth lest it be their last.

Then, in a rush of blazing flames that somehow did not harm a single living thing or damage any property, the world was swept in _fire _and the snow melted. Wong watched with Stephen as magic unlike any they've seen before seeped everywhere there _had_ been damage done, even from before the impromptu ice age, and start _healing_. Stephen was staring at his hands in utter astonishment as they iced over before the same burning flames swept down them to leave his hands still scarred, yes, but there was no pain and there was _no shaking_. The two sorcerers watched as the Sorcerer Supreme flexed his fingers without difficulty and Strange let out a sob.

Sam Wilson only just caught James Rhodes when the man buckled under the ice that encased his legs before fire burned over them, tongues of flames licking out of the few cracks on his armor meant for releasing extra heat before it all disappeared and Rhodey pushed himself out of a rapidly opening War Machine armor. The braces on his legs had been deactivated, somehow, and yet Rhodes was standing on his own, shaking with effort legs. No additional help. He could wriggle his toes and feel them.

Back in the Compound, a portal opened and out came the sorcerers that Wong and Stephen had thought lost to them, along with the snow demons that had accompanied Hiku, though thankfully, there were no Eyebots nor Witchfinder Wolves behind them, only to sound of an awakening and perfectly healthy rain forest. Hiku stared in disbelief at his people before he was descending on them and holding his brothers in arms close.

"Master Strange ... " Master Hamir whispered, staring down at his regrown left hand in wonder and disbelief.

"Doc, you're the doctor and the neurosurgeon and the magician," came Bucky Barnes' voice over the comm systems from where he had been helping lift an overturned truck that was blocking a building's entrance full of children and some elderly citizens down in Brooklyn. "Is my seventy years lost arm supposed to _regrow _out of nowhere?" He asked hysterically and the sorcerers all felt very feint. Stephen's hands were shaking all over again and this time it wasn't because of the results after his accident.

"This is impossible," Wong felt the need to say, voice just barely there, as he stared at all the miracles that should have been impossible taking place. "There is no way _anyone _or _anything _can do all of _this_."

"No one knows what dragons and their hatchers can actually do," Aidna whispered, as stunned as the rest of them as every ache in her body from years and fighting and life simply evaporated.

"I don't think I'm qualified to be a Black Widow anymore," came said woman's from the doorway, where she was staring at the holographic projection of FRIDAY's scans of her abdomen. There was a perfectly healthy uterus and ovaries just where they were supposed to be. The redhead's face was full of wonder. She had long since resigned herself to the fact that she'll never actually have any kids of her own. Now, she was a perfectly normal woman with all the right parts that had once been taken from her.

Then, as surprising as always, a portal appeared and through it stepped none other than Tony Stark, his arms full of a _much_ larger form than they were used from the young Elsa. Namely, a bleach blond girl, no older than perhaps ten to twelve years of age, wrapped up in what appeared to be Tony's hoodie and socks, her face burrowed into his neck. She appeared to be sleeping like a baby. Tony, on the other hand, looked to be on the precipe of hysterics or panic as he looked at them in a desperate silent call for help.

"Anyone here know how to take care of a nine year old girl that's actually a dragon?"

" ... I'll get Scott and Clint on the line."

00000

"Did anyone know dragons could do _that_?" Bucky asked as Tony got what appeared to be indeed Elsa tucked in. "And why does she look so much like the Elsa from Frozen without looking like an animated cartoon character?"

Tony couldn't help but rub at his forehead in an attempt to prevent a headache from developing, though he wasn't all that sure how well that was going to help. If at all, he thought a bit bitterly and then got even more bitter when the headache immediately abated as though it had never even been there in the first place. He scowled, knowing he was being irrational about the relief from the pain, especially as he was currently running on _zero _caffeine, but not getting a headache was just one more thing that proved he was less and less human-normal by the day. There were many things he needed to get used to, as there had been since he woke Elsa up and hatched her from her egg, but this was new and completely different and something he did not actually want to learn to live with.

Magic? Yeah, sure, okay. Both of the people who shared his soul were very much magical, one its warden, the other its governor, so to speak. Magic he could get used to. An abnormally long lifetime? Okay, harder but manageable when he thinks of all the lives that will be born in the wake of his own continued survival and all the wonderful things that can be discovered and invented and just happen. It was a sacrifice and he was used to those.

Being able to constantly feel the Flow? _That _he could live without,_ thank you very much_. Not that anyone asked before he was told to just dive in. He didn't regret it. Elsa would be dead if he hadn't done it, which meant the sacrifice of his own solidarity of mind was insignificant in comparison, but he'd just wish to have a little _break _from it.

He didn't know whether he wanted to _scream _or send prayers of thanks that the break actually came the _second _he asked for it.

Apparently, dragons and their kin don't just _watch _the Flow of Existence but _command _it, too, to a point. He doesn't like it. That's too much power in the hands of someone like him, who had nearly blown his own planet up when trying to save it from itself.

"It's an ancient defense mechanism of some sort, to be able to blend in with the locals to hide themselves and their young ones. Dragons developed it after the first of the purges started happening in a dimension far from our own," he finally replied to James' question, deciding to deal with all of the craziness once Elsa was awake and they settled into the new status quo with Strange and the fact that, apparently, the Soul Stone likes to watch over them like either an overprotective mother hen or like a creeper. "As for the appearance she took, it's entirely up to her imagination, I think. She liked it like this and chose to look like it."

" ... You two are way to obsessed with Disney princess movies," deadpanned Stephen from where he was checking over her vitals as the actual fucking doctor instead of Bruce, as the other scientist had offered. Tony, quite frankly, didn't want anyone near Elsa in her vulnerable - perhaps even more so right now, in this seemingly human form - state. Stephen he knew he could trust. The bond between them hummed merrily, sometimes so much so that they both found themselves blushing for no apparent reason except that their souls were excited to have someone so complimentary to themselves bonded to them. "Also, you seem to be rather knowledgeable about all of this, all of a sudden."

If he were anyone else, that would have sounded accusatory. Stephen didn't. If anything, it was more worry and concern - for _him_, nor for the potential chaos he might cause with that knowledge. How refreshing, even if he was mostly used to it by now from Stephen and Peter and now Barnes and Lang and, occasionally, Hope and Carol. Rhodey, Happy, Pepper and Harley don't count. Hell, even Fury doesn't count. The guy was good at hiding it, but Tony had always known the one eyed bastard was somewhat fond of him, even if he never outright showed it or said anything about it. Which was a dick move but one he could understand. They were both men who knew they endangered anyone whom they come to love.

"Well, there were the books and then the trip to Ahtohallan and I seem to remember now a ... mirror made of ice or crystal, showing me many things I had no way of knowing beforehand," he frowned, thinking about that and wondering why he thought Stephen might have been there. Then again, Stephen _had _asked him something about not remembering something along those lines. Maybe Stephen got a front row seat when he had come into his mind to wake him up and save him from a frozen heart (seriously, he was going to have a long talk with Disney about all of the shit they got so accurate, as well as Aidna to see how much of the movies were actually fucking _accurate_). "And then, after entering the Flow, I think I might know _more _than any other single person before me has that wasn't a dragon by birth."

"Sounds ... _overwhelming_," Lang offered awkwardly from where he was sitting in an armchair, trying to keep his distance but not actually leaving since Tony had asked him for help. He looked decadently uncomfortable in the illegally comfortable armchair of Tony's private living room, which should be against the law because that thing cost a fortune just because it was so comfy. "And you said the thing was made of actual _fire_?"

"And met the first ever dragon summoner?" Barton, who was trying to appear casual where he leaned against the wall with his arms crossed while his eyes betrayed him as he mapped out the exits, asked, his attention turning to Tony. "What were they like? Man? Woman? How many heads?"

"Not summoner, _Ib_. The first dragon pair was not so dependent on each other. The dragon was long since born hen they made the bond between their souls. Only later did Ib summon dragons from their eggs. And I have no idea if they even had a gender but they appeared humanoid." Though he still got some shivers when thinking about the first Ib because they had a rather intense presence around them, both from years and the wisdom such years piled up and the sheer _power_. Stark did not want to know how they came upon such power nor did he want to have that same power rest on his own already overburdened shoulders. "And the river appeared to be made of fire because it looks like the power of all of magic and those who watch over it. Elsa is the only one left so it was a mix of freezing and scorching flames. Diving into it felt like losing myself for a moment, but Stephen did me a _huge _favor in binding our souls together. I had an outside anchor besides Elsa, who was sinking into the Flow even more than I was."

"Good to know that was the right move to make, at least," said Sorcerer Supreme said as he straightened up from his examination, apparently done. "She's looking fine, now. Almost all of her vitals match a humans except for the spikes of magic my own is picking up from her, which were ridiculously _huge _already but are now even _larger_. The need for proper training for you was already in discussion before all of this happened, Tony, but now it's a necessity. As soon as the both of you properly recover from this ordeal, we'll need to start. Elsa's instinctive control has been shot before the power boost so she might need some time to get that under control and, well, you just need to learn how to properly wield your magic. Shouldn't take too long, for either of you."

"Good, because we still have those Empurikil bastards to deal with."

"Empirikul," Stephen corrected with a sigh, but Tony noted it was definitely more fond than exasperated. "And we can't deal with them. Not when they have weaponry that seems to neutralize magic itself. Hiku suggests we don't unless we have to, no matter how dangerous they are."

"Yeah, well, Hikupakularmadiramis can shove his advice and suggestions up his ass because he doesn't know what I do," Tony muttered under his breath before taking in a lungful of air and focusing on where Elsa's magic was shared between their souls. He didn't have access to the whole thing but he had control over most of it, which was already frightening enough, thank you. Before anyone could ask what he knew, Tony managed to conjure up an image of the Earth out of sparks, much how Stephen and his sorcerers used magic, but his were the colors of gentle purple, almost white blue and a bit of pink here and there. The shields around Earth that protected it from Dormammu were a solid purple, though, as were the sanctums a bright pink to stand out against the rest of the image.

What drew everyone's attention, though, was the vortex like dark blue that seemed to be fixed in place while the image of the Earth casually spun around and around on its axis. It was ominous as it should be.

"And what is that?" Barnes asked, sounding wary. Tony almost wished he had let him be the one to hold the rest of the rouges and the other Avengers back instead of leaving it up to Vision, Nebula and Peter, but the man still had trouble adjusting to the fact that the metal on his body now was _armor _and not substitute flesh for his once missing arm.

"You know how Hikupakularmadiramis and his friends opened a rift in reality to come from their dimension to ours? Well, it's still there." At the shock on the faces of everyone in attendance, Tony gave a grim smile. "And it's going to open in, approximately, two to three weeks time. And the Imerator knows this and he is waiting for it."

"And he will come through," a new, by now familiar voice said and all of the men whirled around to look at the now awake human-looking Elsa, startled by how her eyes had not changed a bit, still looking like two crystals of ice cut perfectly, still as sharp as ever and still looking first towards her summoner, her hatcher, her kin, her _Ib_. "And he will hunt us."

"And he will fail," Stephen said with determination, face grim but not budging when Elsa's eyes turned to him, taking in the bond that connected them through Tony, deeming it alright before looking to the engineer again. He was by her side in an instant.

"I'm sorry," she whispered, small hand reaching out to place it over where the shards of her attempted protection had almost frozen his heart. There was pain in her eyes and voice that no seemingly-nine year old should feel.

"It wasn't your fault," Tony answered in a thick voice, a hand of his own reaching out for Elsa, brushing her so light hair out of her pale face. He wondered if this was what fatherhood felt like and how Howard could have found it so difficult or so scary as to run away from it every chance he got. It was overwhelming, yes, but it was just oh so _worth it_. And while he knew Elsa was his partner, his equal, she was still currently only a _child_. The status of their relationship can change when she grows up a bit more. For now, she was just one of his children, as far as he's concerned.

Elsa didn't appear all that happy with his answer. "Never again," she promised and her magic nearly flooded the room as a bright shine appeared underneath her hand over his heart. Tony held perfectly still until the light show died and she shifted her hand before he looked down, only to find a pendant on what looked to be a chain of pure energy. The pendant was made of ice crystals and looked like the exact replica of the star from Frozen 2's logo, Elsa's star as the fifth elemental spirit after she tamed the other four. Fitting, given their history.

Tony just smiled and accepted it. _Never again_, he agreed, if for different reasons.

Never again will Elsa be in such danger under his watch.

_Let Ahtohallan be my witness_.


	22. Chapter 22

**Show Yourself Into The Unknown**

**Summary: The one where Thanos is dead, Tony has weird dreams instead of nightmares, the Avengers watch dubious Disney movies and mystical creatures are more than real. Oh, and the Cloak totally ships it.**

Their recovery time was riddled with Avengers meetings with both Ross and Fury as Tony, once more, spoke of a danger just waiting to descend on them. This time, though, at least everyone was listening, even if he no longer came to the meetings with a dragon wrapped around his shoulders or resting in his arms. Elsa was still very much unwell and getting used to the new form she refused to leave until her control was back under, well, _control_. Peter spent most of his free time with her, which was almost all day every day since all the schools were still closed as the world was still trying to wrap its head around what the hell had just happened days earlier when a new near ice age had ended with a planetary healing of all of the wounds anyone had suffered during their lifetime.

Really, it was only a matter of time before the governments of the world got curious and impatient and greedy for the source of such a miracle and such a power. Tony had been expecting it, especially after FRIDAY showed him an interview Rogers gave without anyone's say-so to a bunch of reporters, saying that the one responsible for the healing was unavailable, _as though he even understood what he was talking about_. Tony had to be held back from ripping his throat out with his own teeth and Fury was still chewing him out for that mess a few days later when Agent Ross arrived with General Ross in the afternoon, the younger of the Rosses looking decidedly uncomfortable to be there and extremely apologetic when he saw Elsa was only now getting her serving of lunch from Barnes.

The rest of the Avengers, old and new and formerly rouge, immediately all but leapt into defensive positions but, thankfully, Fury had been there, having taken an interest in Elsa's new appearance and the stories she was willing to share about the Emirikul that she knew of so Earth can be better prepared for the inevitable attack, so he controlled the more trigger-happy ones.

Tony deliberately didn't even flinch, continuing to chew on the barbecued chicken breast piece he was eating and not even being hostile, just nodding at the general, just to see his blood pressure skyrocket from that alone. He hated that Ross had been chosen to _investigate _the situation but he had known it would be him and not someone else.

He was power-hungry, he liked hunting innocent creatures and he was merciless.

They were all suddenly glad that Elsa had chosen to stay in her human-like form. Less suspicious. Even mutants didn't get their powers this young.

"Mr Stark," General Ross greeted and Tony chewed for a few more seconds, just to get his eyebrow ticking before swallowing and putting on his most charming press smile that once used to make everyone think he was just a drunk rich asshole with a bit too much intellect that he didn't use for anything better than Vegas or downright charm them to do his every whim. It depended on the person. Some had even thought it to be an invitation into his bed, so there's that.

"Mr Ross." The power play didn't go over his head, either, as Ross had once called him _Dr Stark_ for 'diplomacy's sake' - rather, trying to appear competent and the right choice to lead the Avengers through this new Accords-guided age in the eyes of the UN Council - so Tony returned the favor by calling him Mr Ross, instead of General or Council-chairman, though the latter had been pretty much abolished after Tony released the information on the RAFT. The only reason Ross - the elder, assholish one - was here was because the US government probably thought there was a powerful being to be hunted and brought in and experimented on and used as a weapon.

As if Tony was ever going to let that happen to anyone, let alone _Elsa_.

"How may we help you, General?" Fury cut in before Tony could tempt the man into a pissing match, much to his amusement. Bucky and Bruce were trying to appear as small as possible with Natasha standing next to them, casually fingering a rather sharp looking knife that had _no _business at the dinning table. Damned spies and their tricks, no matter how handy in this situation. What Tony found the most amusing, though, was the cat in Carol's arms. He knew it was a scary alien that could eat them all - it ate the fucking _Tesseract_! How about that, right? - but Carol was apparently willing to let it loose on General Asshole if he became too much of an asshat. God bless that woman. God bless all of the strong and independent and scary women in this world.

Though it wasn't a good sign that Nebula already looked ready to commit murder.

Nor that Hope was already on the phone with, no doubt (*shudder*) Pepper, already planning how to legally murder Ross and then covertly hide his metaphorical body. Though it's quite possible none of it is a metaphor and he found he really wouldn't mind.

The rest were just quiet and observing what was going on, wondering if they should get involve, scatter or just sit and wait it out. Stark was personally of the opinion that they should leave, because some of these people had no mute button and when dealing with this asshole, it was necessary. Even worse would be if one of them actually drew attention to _Elsa_ and the fact that she's a _dragon_. And since it was technically Rogers' fault that the asshole was here in the first place, Tony sent Loki a _look_.

The trickster, thankfully, understood and leaned over to whisper in Valkyrie's ear. The lovable drunk grunted, stood up and, much to his amusement, grabbed Rogers by the ear, started dragging him out of the kitchen. Loki looked in a sort of besotted way before sighing and extending a hand to the disguised dragon. "Let me escort you, young Lady Stark." Claiming she was an adopted or bastard child of his was the best cover for her, even if Elsa protested that she was _no child_. They were _equals_ but they needed a believable story, so she'll have to get used to it for a while.

Elsa shot Tony a look, not budging from her seat. _'I'm not going anywhere without you. Especially not if it means leaving you alone in the presence of the likes of _him_.'_

Tony didn't know whether to roll his eyes or curl up around this warm feeling he got every time Elsa showed how much she cared about him. "Go on, it's fine." _'Stephen and Fury are here and if you're really that worried about it, ask FRIDAY to show you the live footage. Just go with Loki. If you stay, you'll be suspicious and I want you out of sight, out of mind where this bastard is concerned.'_

_'You better stay safe,'_ was the last thing she sent before nodding her head and accepting Loki's hand. Tony still had some difficulties with dealing with the fact that he and Elsa were practically magical _royalty_. Or even more, but royalty was already hard enough to manage so he didn't even _try_ to think of the implications behind the whole warden of all of magic and the Flow of Existence thing. It's okay to distantly, theoretically be aware that the multiverse's continued survival depended on you but he'd rather not be directly confronted by that knowledge. Even if he now possessed a constant awareness of the Flow.

Tony watched them go even as he addressed the others. "Bucky, Thor, do me the honor of getting the others out of here. Not you, Romanov, Hope, Carol. Stephen, send Wong my regards when you see him later. It seems you'll be late for your lesson with the novices." The others were staring at him in either unease or dumbfounded confusion. He arched an eyebrow that practically screamed 'Did I stutter?' Barnes was the first to stand up, grabbing Wilson up in a fireman carry and taking him out of the room before he could protest too much. Thor was about to follow his lead with Barton but Clint, for once, decided to leave the matter in Tony's hands and left with a guiding hand on Wanda's back, the Scarlet Bitch looking ready to protest but for once keeping her mouth shut when the still murderous looking Nebula fell in step behind them. Vision once again trailed after the cyborg, Lang shooting out of his seat before Thor could carry him out, leaving the big Asgardian looking like a kicked puppy as he trudged out.

Rhodey, predictably, planted himself stubbornly at Tony's right and didn't budge, right where he belonged. He didn't flinch when both Rosses' eyes trailed down to his now perfectly healthy legs.

"General?" Fury reminded and the older Ross stopped staring, cleared his throat and getting on with it.

"Yes, right. I came here today to discuss the ... _phenomenon_ from a couple of days ago on behalf of the US government. The president is concerned about the hypothetical existence of a person or creature with the power to affect our planet in such a way."

Stephen arched an eyebrow as he lowered his cup of tea from where he was leaning against the bar-like counter in the kitchen/dinning room. "Extraterrestrials and extradimensional beings have been visiting Earth for longer than the human race has existed, General Ross. They're hardly going to stop _now_ just because humanity doesn't like it."

"Isn't it _your_ job to keep them out?" The man challenged but Natasha cut in before the good doctor could answer.

"Doctor Strange has submitted a throughout report at the start of his association with the Avengers, on the behest of Dr Stark, that explicitly and transparently explains what he does and what is in his domain of power. His order has been protecting this world and this dimension since times immemorial. If I understand it correctly, it is up to his order to make sure none of the visitors to this dimension have malicious intentions or are a danger to us all. The 'threat' has been dealt with and the Avengers are currently busy with another potential threat that may just come at us in a few weeks time. I'm afraid none of us have the time to spare for a proper hearing at this time."

Tony could only hope that Hiku and his people were notified to stay inside of the training room until Ross leaves. Snow demons aren't exactly something the government should know about, not when they're already close to extinct and will need help reestablishing themselves on a different world.

"That doesn't answer my question," Ross growled and Tony sighed, crossing his arms as he leaned back in his seat.

"Well, you didn't exactly _ask_ one," he pointed out, much to the army man's annoyance. Tony didn't need to look over his shoulder to know Rhodey was biting back a smile. "As for the _phenomenon_ that hit our planet, you also weren't exactly specific. Two happened in rather quick succession. I admit that the cold one had been rather ... _traumatic_ and I understand the government's need to explain to the people why and how it had happened and that they are overall safe-" The way Ross twitched told Tony exactly what he had thought: this hadn't even occurred to the bastards. Not that he'd expected much better. If they could, they would write it off as a result of overpopulating the planet or some other shit, possibly blame it on the effects of global warming, while keeping the truth to themselves, especially if they could get their hands on the actual source of power. They were predictable that way, all the people in any position of power. "But that has been dealt with, the snow and the damage it had caused are gone. As for the other one, we have even less of an explanation for that one."

"It's never been seen or heard of before," Carol pipped in, drawing attention to how ... _ominously_ she was petting Goose. Very cliche villain-like. "I've visited thousands of planets, sir. Mass healing on this scale is unheard of."

"No texts that we're in possession of suggest any explanations, either," Stephen confirmed, sounding far too casual.

"Besides, it's not like the second phenomenon was _bad_ for Earth or humanity," Rhodey pointed out, sounding blase. "Haven't we been trying to find cures for cancer, HIV and dozens of other illnesses? Whatever the hell happened just saved millions of lives. If anything, we should be grateful for such a miracle."

Tony winced. _'Bad move there, buddy.'_

"And how exactly, Colonel Rhodes, can we be sure that this 'miracle' will _last_ and won't just be reversed in the deadliest way possible? How can we be sure this isn't some warmongering space monster's attempt to lure us into a false sense of security so it can strike us down while we're vulnerable?" Ross dished out paranoid question after question that, honestly, Tony would usually be the first one asking where magic was concerned if his soul wasn't bound to a literal real life fucking _dragon_ and to a very real, very powerful sorcerer.

"As long as magic exists," Strange cut in before anymore paranoia could be thrown their way. "What happened a few days ago will be permanent. The people and the injuries healed won't revert back to their previous state." Then, because Doctor Stephen Vincent Strange _was_ Anthony Edward Stark's perfect and most compatible soul match, the man continued. "Trust me, I'm a doctor." And he fucking _winked_.

Hope actually looked close to cracking up at that.

Tony just rolled his eyes.

"As you can see," the Wasp said when she got herself under control and saw that Ross looked ready to pop a blood vessel. "There is nothing to concern yourself with here, General. Director Fury and Agent Ross have been diligently updating all concerned parties in Avengers business and the Avengers themselves have been sending our reports-" More like Tony, Vision, Rhodey, Hope and FRIDAY had been doing it for everyone who _wasn't_ (Rogers, Maximoff, occasionally Wilson, more often than not Barton) or simply didn't know how (Thor, Loki, Valkyrie, Nebula, Peter) in order to keep the paper pushers off of their backs. Pepper and Happy helped when they weren't swamped with SI work and meetings. Even Ross and Hill falsified the reports just to keep the Avengers running in the wake of the Snap and the whole Thanos situation. It was easier than trying to convince Rogers that he had to defer to _someone_ other than himself. That was just a lost cause and a pure waste of precious time, brain power and nerves. "Regularly. You could have found all of your answers there instead of wasting your valuable time by coming out here."

Which was her basically chiding him for not reading the damned reports in a very subtle way. It didn't escape anyone's notice.

Ross just looked pissed.

"Is there anything else you needed, Mr Ross?" Tony oh so innocently asked and watched the vein in Ross' temple budge, looking ready to pop any second.

"I know you're hiding something, _Stark_." It's been a while since someone spat out his name like that. St least they were finally dropping their false polite acts and getting to the real deal. Tony felt the second his press smile slid right off his face to leave behind the man who had blown his way out of a terrorist camp to freedom in a masterpiece of technology that was unmatched to this day (not Mark _I_ but Iron Man armor in general). "And you know I'm going to find out. And when I do, you and your group of circus freaks will finally be out in your proper place, where you _belong_."

The smile stretched on his lips was sharper than a diamond drill. "Will that be all, Mr Ross?"

The man was seething as the other Ross escorted him out of the room and then the compound. Elsa came running into the room as soon as it was safe, her crystal-like eyes immediately scanning Tony for any possible harm despite having watched the entire thing on the live security feed. Tony still found it very strange to see a little girl when he was used to a dragon. He missed her dragon form. It was beautiful and a masterpiece of creation, as far as he was concerned.

"Was it really necessary to aggravate the man, Stark?" Rogers, who'd followed after Elsa with everyone else and was still rubbing his ear from Valkyrie's rough handling, admonished when he walked into the room.

Tony rolled his eyes. "If you hadn't been an utter _idiot _and hadn't blabbed to the media about there being 'someone' responsible for all of this, we wouldn't even be _having _this problem right now, Craptain Rogers. And yes, it was very necessary. What do you think was the first thing I did for SHIELD, back in 2009?"

"I dread to ask," came the dry reply but, surprisingly, Fury indulged Tony with a response, possibly because Rogers' had pissed him off with the amount of work he had dropped in the man's lap with his idiocy on camera.

"Stark is perfectly capable and absolutely the most suitable person to deal with Ross. When we wanted him off of Banner's case, we sent in Stark to get him to back off. As you can see, it worked." Well, for the _most _part, but that's because Ross had been going out of his way to hunt the _Avengers _and that was while they were _heroes_. Tony had _also _been the only one suitable and capable of dealing with Ross when the world demanded the rouges' heads and the _only _reason he had taken up the call was because he _knew _something _big _was coming and that the world would need all the firepower they had. It simply hadn't been the time to let the backstabbers get what they deserved. "That aside, we need to make plans. It's obvious that our schedule's just been screwed and that we'll have to pick up the pace a bit. Any bright ideas going around?"

"I'll take Tony and Elsa for training so they can get proper control of their powers," Stephen immediately said and Tony grimaced at the thought of _magic _training but didn't object. Elsa needed her instinctual control back and he needed to get used to having magic. "Wong is on standby for Kamar-Taj and magic related problems. Any immediate issues can be dealt with by Loki."

"Valkyrie and I will prepare the Asgardians for war," Thor offered next, already preparing to take himself and said warrior back to New Asgard to do so. "Earth is our home now, too. Even if this upcoming battle wasn't important for existence itself, we would fight on your side."

"In other words, when the time is right, we'll be ready," Valkyrie confirmed, for once sounding completely sober.

"Should I get word out that Earth is the current temporary housing of the last dragon and its summoner?" Loki mused, green eyes trained on Tony and Stephen. "The knowledge that the last dragon is in trouble will have magic users from all over the multiverse arriving at our doorstep to offer their aid."

"That comes with the risk of the coming of those who would wish to harness my powers for themselves, I fear," Elsa countered, discouraging the idea. "A dragon is precious. The _last _dragon will be more than. They may fight the Emirikul for us but they will turn on us the second the threat is neutralized."

"Right. Keeping it on the down low, then." Carol nodded, handing Goose over to Fury as she let herself light up with her powers. "I'll get the Guardians of the Galaxy. For them, at least, we can spare some trust. They'll be a good asset in this fight."

"I'll contact King T'Challa and we'll ask Wakanda for help," Everett said as he walked back into the room, sounding exhausted and looking like he was battling a raging headache. "Sorry about that, Mr Stark. I had no choice in bringing him here."

"Perfectly understandable," Tony assured. "And yeah, we'll need all the firepower we can get. Kitty cat and his badass Dora Milaje will be a great addition to this fight, especially as magic itself is in danger and these fuckers have a way to neutralize it."

"Me and my brothers in arms offer our aid, Starborn," Hiku vowed as he and said snow demon warriors joined their little consortium. "We owe you a debt that cannot be repaid but we shall try."

Rhodey turned to Tony and nodded towards the waiting Sorcerer Supreme. "You go ahead and leave all of the planning to us. You've got your own problems to solve."

Tony nodded and took the hand of one of his soulmates while walking over towards the other. "Ready?" Stephen asked even as he took out his sling ring and started casting for a portal.

"As ready as I'll ever be, Doc."


	23. Chapter 23

**Show Yourself Into The Unknown**

**Summary: The one where Thanos is dead, Tony has weird dreams instead of nightmares, the Avengers watch dubious Disney movies and mystical creatures are more than real. Oh, and the Cloak totally ships it.**

When Stephen had said he'd need training in controlling his magic and that Elsa'll need time and exercise to regain her instinctual control over her powers, he had sort of been expecting to find Kamar-Taj on the other side of the portal once he stepped through.

Instead, he found himself on what appeared to be an abandoned hiking path somewhere very high on what appeared to be Mount Everest.

Though he figured this was probably the best place for this kind of training to occur, anyway. No one was around for miles upon miles, the cold didn't bother Tony and Elsa was an ice dragon, among other things. Not to mention that the view was _spectacular_. In a way, it almost reminded Tony of his first glimpse of Ahtohallan, if not quite as beautiful.

"Come on," Stephen called and beckoned them to follow him. Elsa and Tony turned around to see that he was slowly making his way up a trail that seems to be suspiciously well kept for an abandoned hiking path. "There's a rest stop that Kamar-Taj has made into a safe haven for when we send out people here for missions or training. It's ours for the foreseeable future, until you've mastered all that you need to."

"Are you telling me people actually come here often?" The genius asked as he took Elsa's hand - not because she looked like an nine year old but because physical contact calmed them both and he could feel her anxiety skyrocketing at the prospect of Tony so close to ice and snow after she had almost killed him with her own - and the two followed after his soulmate. The Cloak of Levitation, being the melodramatic piece of outerwear that it was, was whipping around in the harsh winds extra hard to make Strange look even more mysterious and dramatic.

"Not often, but regularly, yes," the sorcerer replied over his shoulder as he trudged through snow and over wet but surprisingly not slippery rocks. Tony figured it was done by magic and let it go. "Sometimes we don't have a choice, as there is a few ley lines that idiots like to mess with around here, be they from our or a different dimension. Other times, this is the only safe place to practice particularly strong spells so we can see what effect it has on our world. Usually, such spells should be done in the Mirror Dimensions, but everything that happens there doesn't affect the real world, let's call it, so we sometimes can't say how effective it was, hence we do it here."

"But isn't it a bit, I don't know, _cold_?" Tony may not feel it but he knew it was well bellow freezing temperatures here.

"Well, yes-"

"Should you really be out here?" Stark cut in, remembering how much the cold bothered the man's hands and completely disregarding the fact that his and Elsa's little trip into the Flow had healed all of Earth from their injuries and ailments.

"It's fine. The damage is repaired and the pain is gone. My hands don't shake and even most of the scars were erased. The cold doesn't bother me anymore than the average joe. The more important thing here is to get your training underway and finished before we need to fight off the Empirikul. That's our priority right now. A little general discomfort at the cold won't kill me."

Tony nodded with a disbelieving sound, making Stephen turn around to throw a glare at him, which the billionaire expertly ignored given how often Pepper, Happy or Rhodey had thrown such a look his way since he'd met them. Instead, he looked down to Elsa, who was already looking up at him, having registered his thoughts even before he could voice them. He did, for Stephen's sake. "Can you do the same thing you did for me and make him impervious to the cold?"

"Even if she can't," the sorcerer cut in before the dragon could answer. "We need to make sure she has her control back before she attempts using magic. It could be extremely dangerous otherwise, and not just for the two of you, but for everyone else as well."

"The enchantment is easy and I could do it in my sleep, Sorcerer Supreme," Elsa replied, sounding a bit annoyed. She probably hated all of the babying everyone's been dishing out as of late. Tony kind of agreed. He wasn't made of fucking glass! "In fact, I have. In prenatal sleep, at that."

"Yes, well, your control wasn't shot then. I has been since then, rather recently might I add," Stephen drawled, coming to a stop with arms crossed, trying to look imposing with the extra height he had on both dragon and her Ib. Neither was impressed nor intimidated. "We shouldn't risk it. Do you honestly want to gamble with the possibility you might hurt Tony if you try? I know it wasn't your fault, but you nearly killed him the last time you used your powers and he _nearly died_ in an attempt to save your life. Just give him some time to recover from that before experimenting with your new or old limits."

Stark glared at Strange when he felt Elsa mentally flinch away from that space between their shared souls where they always burrowed into when needing the comfort of knowing the other was _there _and _alive_. Elsa looked more stoic as she replied than anyone wearing a nine year old's body had any right to be. "My power will never again hurt Tony. But I see your point, Doctor Strange, and I agree. I won't experiment until you've deemed my control acceptable."

Stephen nodded, pleased, and the tension left his body. Tony held tightly onto Elsa's hand in case she tried to draw away from him even more, but she didn't and she, in fact, returned to that shared place between them. Silently, they continued on their way to the hut that would be their home for the foreseeable future.

The first day was rather tense between all three of them. Tony purposefully ignored Strange outside of any professional interactions because of the shock method he had used against Elsa until the man looked like he was drowning in guilt. Tony forgave him by dinner time and they prepared a schedule they were hoping to keep to. Elsa had left it to them, heading off to sleep so they can have some privacy. Tony had blushed a bright red when he got a _very_ suggestive mental eyebrow wiggle that no nine year old should ever make at their ... whatever! They just shouldn't. He's just glad Stephen, despite being connected to his soul, was not privy to his connection to Elsa.

The second day, Stephen led them to the biggest plateau on the mountain and they started training. By _meditating_. In a fucking _blizzard_. Tony needed two hours just to stop glaring at the Sorcerer Supreme before he can go on with the show. Which didn't exactly work out as planned, as the second when both Tony and Elsa tried to focus, they slipped into the Flow and since Tony was already displeased by the blizzard, it immediately stopped. Stephen had to put up similar wards around them as in the Temple of Ahtohallan to separate them from the Flow long enough for them to come back to themselves. The first day of official training didn't go well, to say the least.

The third day was filled with tension as they now knew what could happen. Slipping into the Flow of Existence itself was not something they should allow to happen al that often. There were many things that could go wrong with a single wrong _breath_, let alone thought like the day before. Usual methods of meditation were risky, so Stephen physically held onto Tony's hand to act as his anchor while the genius did the same with and for Elsa. Energy kept buzzing through their bodies from that mere contact as the Flow tried to embrace the two dragon kin, but Strange kept them grounded almost expertly. He had no place in the Flow. Its currents won't accept him.

It took them a better part of two days before they finally managed to get meditation down right and by that time, Tony was _exhausted_. The dawning of day five should have been him and Elsa finally meditating without an anchor, but that just _had_ to be the day they got a call from the Compound. It was, _of course_, Rogers, who else. Tony did _not_ appreciate his breakfast being interrupted after not having eaten anything in two days. "What the fuck do you want, Rogers? I'm busy."

"Language," the blond responded immediately and Tony was about to respond with something even worse just to spite him but Stephen was there to arch an eyebrow at the good Captain.

"Mr Rogers, we have a busy schedule and are, due to an unfortunate complication, lagging behind. We'd appreciate it if you would get to the point and leave us be." Polite and to the point, a silent 'screw you'. Neat.

"Doctor Strange, we'd appreciate it if you would take this more seriously," Rogers said in return and Tony felt the need to reach through the screen of his phone and strangle the muscle bound idiot. "One of your accomplices showed up today to tell us that the rift was slowly starting to open up again. We don't have time for mistakes. You'll need to adjust your schedule accordingly."

"Rogers, just put Loki or Thor or Valkyrie or Wong on the line. If we don't have much time, I'd rather not waste it on your nonsense," Stark snapped, already gesturing for FRIDAY off screen to connect to the phone given to the trickster god. Loki answered before Steve could say something else.

"You had need of me, friend Stark?"

"Rogers said there was a situation with the rift?" The Asgardian looked mighty confused by that before realization set in and Loki sent a fierce scowl at the heavens, as though cursing them for having to deal with idiots or creating idiots the likes of Steve Rogers.

"Nothing we haven't been aware of, I assure you," Loki said with a long suffering sigh. "Wong and another sorcerer went to check on it and reported here a couple of hours ago. It _is_ opening, but at the speed you and Lady Elsa predicted. You still have time to get your affairs under control."

"Then why the hell did you bother us, oh Captain my Captain?" Tony growled at Rogers, making the blond's shoulders roll back, as though preparing for a fight. Tony swiped across his screen to end the call before turning back to the Frost Giant. "How did the others react? How are preparations going?"

"Better than Rogers and about as good as expected. Maximoff is still bitching at the Vision, though, for whatever reason. I think they got into a verbal spat some time after you left. Though I had been under the impression that Maximoff had at least _one_ brain cell and would have been smart enough to back off after Nebula threatened her with a knife at her throat." Loki actually sounded something between impressed and incredulous that such stupidity existed.

"Yeah, the rouges actually have only two brain cells between them that they share and they both belong to Barnes and Lang. Preparations are going well?"

"Well, as I've said, they're going as well as can be expected. We're trying to keep track of the rift and determine where it will be upon opening. Captain Marvel has returned with the ones calling themselves the Guardians of the Galaxy and she and Valkyrie seem to have taken charge. Nebula helps, but she's usually there for the intimidation factor if anyone becomes too annoying. Thor's spoken to our people, so we will definitely have support there and your Colonel seems to be working with the one eyed Director on preparing the planet for a swift evacuation from wherever the rift opens. That is our main concern at the moment. Banner attempted to make an algorithm that might predict when and where it may happen but he says he doesn't have all the necessary data."

"Tell him to send what he has right now to me. Elsa and I ought to know the parameters he's no doubt missing," Tony instructs before thanking Loki and wishing him good luck. He ended the call and turned to his two soulmates. "Well, shall we get started?"

"Finish your breakfast, Tony. You won't do the world any good if you collapse out of exhaustion and malnutrition." The brunet in question snorted but didn't try to fight the taller man on it. He was hungry.

The rest of the day was spent properly meditating and giving both Tony and Elsa an opportunity to get their center balance back in control. Tony had fun familiarizing himself with the magic forces that hummed through his home planet - it was a whole new world, looking at it through the colorful glowing energies that made up every being and piece of matter in existence, all of them directed by the Flow that was no longer trying to drag Tony and Elsa back into its currents, thankfully - while Elsa worked on getting her control back into an iron grip.

Day six was spent in much the same manner, not that Tony minded. If it weren't for the urgency of the situation, he would have been content to explore all of this for the rest of this new, young year and longer if he needed to.

As it was, when the seventh day came and Stephen said it was time he taught Tony how to control the magic he got from his and Elsa's soul connection, he was more than ready and eager to learn. Stephen was all for teaching him simple but strong defensive spells but Tony started off the training session with a demand for a magical spar.

"No offense, but you're not ready for that, douchebag," Stephen said with an affectionate huff.

Tony returned it with a mock haughty sniff. "Then I guess you won't have trouble beating me."

Stephen narrowed his eyes and accepted his challenge.

The genius billionaire found it amusing how quickly a man renowned for his photographic memory could forget that Tony had literally had _Ahtohallan_ in his head and had dived into a river that was all of Existence. _Dragons_ didn't emerge from that unchanged and a human like Tony suddenly would?

Needless to say, Stephen was surprised when Tony, in true Frozen nerd fashion, sent an ice attack at his new soulmate, only throwing up a shield at the last second. Tony laughed at his incredulous expression and started making spikes emerge from the ground at random, the Cloak of Levitation eventually having to take its master off the ground with how much flailing about Stephen was doing to get out of the way. But the sorcerer got serious when he experimentally shot an attack at Tony and the shorter man brought out an ice shield over his forearm and flung it away.

It got pretty intense after that.

Elsa was not amused by the amount of bruises and frost bites they returned to her meditating spot with.

That night, Tony found he couldn't sleep for some reason and not knowing what else to do, he went outside to gaze up at the clear sky and count the stars until sleep may come to him. Only to his surprise, his dragon seemed to have had much the same idea. Elsa was rather hard to spot in the white dress she'd magicked to match Frozen 2's Elsa's dress, what with her incredibly pale hair and paler skin. Tony still knew she was there just by the way his soul was reacting.

He sat down next to her on the snow and watched as sparks that matched her dragon form in color danced between her hands and fingers. "It seems you have most of your control back."

"I still fear to use any significant spells," the dragon replied softly to his observation. "Hell, I am hesitant to return to my own natural form! I'm scared, Tony. I'm scared I'll hurt people if I don't have this truly under wraps. I'm scared I'll hurt _you_."

"You won't," he reassured her, smiling gently as he grabbed the snowflake shaped pendant she'd made for him and brought it up between them so he can show it off. "You gave me this, remember? And now that I'm actually learning magic, I'll know what to do and how to stop it if you ever lose control again. You don't have to carry all of these burdens alone, Elsa. It took _me _literal _years _to figure that out but now that I have, I refuse to allow any one of my precious people to think they have to do it all alone. You know you can lean on me, right?"

"I am of the opinion that too many people have already leaned on you and many are still leaning on you, my Ib," Elsa said in a sorrowful voice, looking up at him with grieving eyes. "I fear the burden _you _carry may crumble you."

"Maybe, but even if I carry most of the weight on my own shoulders, I still have help. I have Rhodey and Pepper and Happy. I got Harley and Peter. Bruce and Thor are there sometimes and Carol and Hope try to be there as often as they can after we became friends. And as of recently, I've got Stephen and now I've got _you_. The burden is heavy but while I never let anyone else take it off of my shoulders, I allow them to support _me_, to be my pillars, my safe harbors when the storm becomes too much. So you can lean on me, Elsa," he told her softly and threw an arm around her shoulders. She snuggled up against him and they pretended to need each other's body heat to keep warm. "We may be the only ones of our kind anymore, but we're not alone in this world."

"Sometimes I wonder if it would be easier if we were."

Tony stayed quiet for a moment, gaze far off into the distance, remembering each time he lost someone, when he got hurt or was betrayed, the way his heart had broken and the way the world had beat him down and continued beating him despite him having thrown in the towel and then having to get back up and fight for them all over again.

"Sometimes, I do, too."

They stayed there the whole night and in the morning, when Tony woke up to Stephen gently shaking his shoulder, eyes full of worry for him staying outside the whole night, Elsa was gone.

"Where is she?" He demanded the second drowsiness evaporated and he realized his other soulmate was not where he last remembered her being. The one before him looked as lost as he did, perhaps even more so since he didn't even know that they had been outside since before the asscrack of dawn.

"I don't know. Do you want to go looking for her?"

But before he could respond and they could organize a search party, a deafening cry thundered from the heavens and from the clouds descended a familiar, if much larger shape than either man was used to. Elsa landed hard enough to make the ground tremble under her feet, wings on proud display as she straightened up to look at the two goatee geniuses, her scales as bright and beautiful as the first time Tony had seen her. Only this time, she wasn't the size of a bigger house cat. No, she was now considerably bigger than the hut they had been staying in for the past eight days. Like, some seven to nine times bigger. Tony had a feeling he'd be barely taller than the length of a single of her fingers.

Elsa rumbled a pleased purr that nearly caused an avalanche when she saw how dumbfounded the two men looked. "I'm back."

Tony couldn't help his elated grin.


	24. Chapter 24

**Show Yourself Into The Unknown**

**Summary: The one where Thanos is dead, Tony has weird dreams instead of nightmares, the Avengers watch dubious Disney movies and mystical creatures are more than real. Oh, and the Cloak totally ships it.**

"While I'm glad that you're little Rocky training sequence ended in a success and a timely and orderly fashion, Stark," Fury began wearily not three days later as he stared at the scene before him while the Cloak of Levitation brought Stephen and in his arms Tony down from where they had been ridding from the other side of the world on Elsa's back. "How are we supposed to hide or explain _this_?" He took his sweet time gesturing at the whole of Elsa's now much larger body to encompass the enormity of his point.

Behind him, among the gawking line up of Avengers, sorcerers, Northuldra warriors, the newly arrived Wakandans, Asgardians and Guardians of the Galaxy, Peter looked ready to vibrate out of his skin in excitement as he stared up at the big dragon that may have come straight out of legend or some really good fiction movie. Captain America, though, was the one to break the spellbound silence at seeing Elsa's full new size. "What the _fuck_?"

"_Language_~!" Tony, Elsa and Stephen took great delight in singsonging the scold, which only left several of the gathered people _hysterically_ laughing their asses of. Like Barton, Barnes, Rhodey, Thor and Carol. Lang was giggling but looked awkward about it while Romanov was trying to keep her lips from twitching.

T'Challa could only stare dryly up at the dragon. "No one told me about _this_ new development."

Stark only stuck his tongue out at him like a petulant child, half teasing and half dead-serious. "You're only jealous because you don't have one."

T'Challa shot him a deadpan look. "No, but I'm sure that _Shuri_ will be when she learns she missed out on this. May I take a selfie to rub it in her face? She really needs to stop dissing my sandals."

Tony grinned. T'Challa, it seemed, he could tolerate. But he felt his amusement drain when Elsa nudged at his consciousness. _'Right,'_ he thought with a barely restrained put upon sigh. "So, this is nice and entertaining and all, but we've sort of got a time sensitive crisis going, so if you would stop gawking, we'd all be very grateful. Talk to me, FRI." He bypassed them all and marched straight towards the usual meeting room for world-ending disaster discussing - and it's incredibly sad that they even _had_ one of those - even if they could have set up shop anywhere and it would have been all the same. With his technology, they could have had this meeting anywhere since they can have holographic screens with all the important data anywhere, but it's probably for the best for them to have it at a formal and professional setting. Everyone will be more professional about it, so hopefully there will be no petty fights or stupid arguments popping up at the most inconvenient of times. Those tend to happen in the Avengers a lot, after all.

"Dr Banner has managed to predict, with the alterations you've made to his algorithm, the exact spot of the rift for when it rips open, Boss." FRIDAY, reliable as always, immediately replied but whatever further she was going to say was interrupted by the scientist himself.

"The only problem with my calculation seems to be that the rift started tearing up faster the weaker it got. First, the numbers said that it will open over the Gobi Desert, but my newest calculations if we add in the new speed of the ripping, the rift will probably open somewhere in Egypt, possibly around Cairo, which is major bad, Tony. You know how many people live there and it's a never ending tourist season. The loss of life would be catastrophic."

"Then we'll just have to open the rift ourselves at a more convenient place and the proper timing," Elsa interjected, startling everyone as she glowed a bright, fierce light which left in its wake a very pretty eighteen year old version of the first human form she'd taken. This one had been taken with the goal being for everyone to treat her as an equal instead of overlooking her or mistaking her age with her knowledge and information levels. "That way, we can control where the greatest impact will be and prevent the loss of lives."

"That's all well and good," Wilson started, sounding unconvinced. "But I thought the point of all of this was _not_ to let them into our dimension or whatever."

"The rift will open sooner or later, that is all but inevitable," Wong said with his usual deadpan, unimpressed expression and tone. "We had one chance to stop it while it was still open, but we failed and now we must deal with the consequences. We can't seal that which is already closed. We need to wait for it to open so we can do it properly this time."

"Not to mention that the Empirikul will never stop until all magic is dead," Loki interjected, sounding like he thought the former air force pilot to be the dumbest creature to ever cross his path. "They will find another way to come to Earth eventually. Not only is it the home of the Sorcerer Supreme, but it also houses the Asgardians now and our magic is rather unique. To find out that the last dragon is here as well is only icing on the cake. If they come, they will come with the intent to destroy us all. There will be no hesitation, no prisoners. We're all in danger now."

"Besides, we need to keep Tony and Elsa safe, or else _everything_ is destroyed," Stephen stepped in this time, approaching the already waiting diagram of the barely detectable rift that FRIDAY had prepared for them when they entered the meeting room. "I am a doctor and I hate weighting lives, but a planet of life is not the same as the multiverse and existences itself. We can't let the Imperator get his hands on either of them. It is our duty as Sorcerers of Kamar-Taj to protect the mystical world and Tony and Elsa more than fit that criteria. However the rest of you decide to act, we will be entering this war with or without your help."

"From what we've seen, you could definitely use it," Romanov pointed out lightly, though she seemed much more at ease with life in general since the whole world-wide healing and then the Ross fiasco. Tony wasn't sure why he was so sure about it, but he thought Natasha, for once, didn't have any angle. He wouldn't mistake it for _loyalty_ or anything, but at least she wasn't calculating all the ways she can screw over all sides involved so she'd get some bizarre end result that suited her. Small mercies, that.

"That's unfortunately true," Tony felt the need to agree when his human soulmate made to open his mouth to protest. "The Witchfinder Wolves are definitely our biggest concern. They attack only those with magic and can sniff out anything magical no matter where it's hidden. sorcerers need some degree of intense concentration for the more powerful spells so they can't watch their backs all the time. Witchfinder Wolves won't attack ordinary muggles like you guys - no offense - but they will attack me and Elsa and Loki and all the other magical Asgardians and the snow demons. We'll need someone as backup, especially the units set for closing the rift."

"Don't worry, we've got this," Rocket the Raccoon drawled confidently, making Tony eye him with suspicion that he might have reverted to his old kleptomania and had stolen something. He actually had the gall to look offended when Tony instructed his AI to keep a close eye on him.

"So, what's the plan? Because if you don't have one, I'm sure I can-"

"Shut up, Quill. The adults are talking," Nebula easily cut in, making the half human glare at her in offense but Nebula only glared back and he started inching not so subtly behind Drax, who only looked confused. Well, not as confused as Mantis, who seemed to be trying to determine whether she should touch Elsa to see how things felt for a dragon or something. Elsa herself was careful to stay out of her reach. Not that there was exactly much of skin Mantis could touch, as Elsa had seen fit to clad herself in crystal armor reminiscent of her dragon scales and a rather weird cape/cloak with a construction of sorts that made Tony think would possibly function as some sort of fold-in wings. Not unexpected. Why in the name of the ever loving Ahtohallan would a _dragon_ cut off their own wings? All in all, Elsa looked like a queen from a fairytale ready to go into battle. In fact, she looked like the prettier version of the White Queen in that Alice in Wonderland movie with Johnny Depp.

"We don't have a plan yet, Mr Quill, which is why we've called everyone here today. So we can prepare. We still have a few days according to the newer calculations," Fury explained as he gestured at the timer FRIDAY brought up to demonstrate. "But we _need_ a plan of action. A decisive and final one, so we know at least somewhat what to prepare for. Like this purposefully opening the rift bit. We need to discuss that."

"I agree with Lady Elsa and the sorcerers of Midgard," Valkyrie was the first to cast a vote in, so to speak. "The thing will rip open one way or another. It's better that we have control over when and where if we can't triangulate it off of the planet."

"We need to find the right place for it, though," Loki argued. "Ms FRIDAY, would you please be so kind to bring up a globe of the planet." The AI did so without further prompting, revealing the very detailed representation of Earth. "We need some place which has next to no population but has strong ley lines for easier magical use. The easier we draw on our and the world's magic, the easier it will be for us to fight. That narrows down the places best suited for this fight rather significantly. And considering who our outside allies are, I think this place _here_," he pointed to one of the dots he had made while he had been pointing out strong ley lines and had then dismissed them when FRIDAY showed him how densely some of them were populated, leaving only five, one of which was rather close to Kamar-Taj. "Would be our best bet."

"Not all of us can fight on Mount Everest, Loki," Barton pointed out with little to no venom, which was great, as that meant the meeting might actually end without unnecessary dramatics.

"What if Mr Stark were to loan you guys some suits?" Peter, who had been surprisingly quiet thus far, just standing between Tony and Stephen, as was his norm in meetings like this, suggested thoughtfully. "It'd sacrifice none of your flexibility or movements while also protecting you from both the elements and the stronger attacks."

"Starkson over there raises a fair point, my shield brothers and sisters," Thor agreed, either not noticing or ignoring the half protests and denials Stark and Parker made at the very wrong moniker. The wink the blond Asgardian threw his way made Tony swear vengeance on his mother's grave. Loki was starting to rub off on his brother. _'Or had Thor always been this way and we'd just never noticed it before?'_ A thought for another time. "We've all seen how good of a smith friend Anthony is. It would be good for you to have extra protection against enemies like these."

"And it's super comfortable! Like, it's got heating and padding and everything! I fall asleep in my suit half the time, just ask KAREN, though she scolds me about that from time to time." Tony couldn't help but facepalm as Peter continued talking about how nice his suit was, although it secretly relieved him. As far as he was concerned, Peter Parker was too precious for this world and should be wrapped up in bubble wrap and placed in the safest, most secure apocalypse bunker in the world and be protected from it. Unfortunately, he can't do that so he did the next best thing with the Iron Spider suit. If you were to ask one Anthony Edward Stark for his honest opinion, he'd tell you that he was actually more than happy that Peter spent so much time in his suit. It meant he was generally safer most of the time and that set ease in Tony's mind.

_'No wonder everyone thinks he's your son, my Ib, if this is how you always react,'_ Elsa teased over their bond and he sent her the impression of scowling.

_'Quiet, you. Of course I act like this all the time! The kid is just too reckless and I feel responsible for dragging him into the superhero business in the first place.'_

_'He's been swinging around buildings on his own before you reached out to him. If anything, you at least made him safer.'_

_'I brought the kid to the airport battle in Berlin.'_

_'Not knowing it will _be_ a fight, might I remind you, my oh so genius Ib. Besides, young Peter loves you. He's just embarrassed. If you were to tell him that he was allowed to, he'd definitely be calling you 'dad'.'_

Tony turned his focus back to the real world to ignore his embarrassment and pleasure at the thought. He wasn't really worthy of Peter. He didn't want to ruin the kid or scar him for life. It's better not to contemplate such things. "I can make you some exosuits to keep out the elements and protect you in the fight, but I expect them back and I _will_ be getting them back, just so you all know. FRIDAY has a connection to them all and if any of you even thinks about hacking the suits you're given, you can be damn well sure that you'll be ejected out of it faster than you can say Toothless. I'll need about a day to get the nanites ready. In the meantime, we need to figure out when we want to open the rift. It will pass over that point at least three times, today included, before it's too close to opening."

"During daylight, they would be next to invisible," Hiku said, immediately discarding the first of their two real options.

"The nights on Everest aren't gracious," Stephen pointed out and Tony shuddered at the thought of the howling winds, the whipping snow and the cold he would have felt had he not bonded to Elsa.

"A tactical advantage is more important than our own comfort," Barnes said decisively, obviously leaning more towards Hiku's suggestion that they choose the second day.

"Besides, the witching hour always allows for greater magic flow," Loki commented again and it was already decided as far as the magic users were concerned.

"Our ice magic will be strongest at Everest and the witching hour will definitely help. The visibility, though, will still be a problem without any light on," Aidna, who was the representative of the Northuldra waiting outside with most of the sorcerers along with Migil, advised. "We need light, and a lot of it, but not too much to blind us to the Empirikul's white armor."

Elsa nodded. "Leave that to me."

_'What are you going to do?'_ Tony couldn't help but wonder, asking over their bond. He could tell from the other one that Stephen was interested as well.

_'I will simply influence the Flow to make the Moon full and shining brighter than usual. The snow will reflect its light fine enough for us to see our enemies. A shining crystal here or there more will be more than enough to set the proper scene.'_

_'Are you sure you should be messing with the Flow of all of _existence_ like that?'_

_'I am dragon, my Ib. My kind has been in and out of the Flow, changing and managing it for countless eons. I know what I am doing.'_

Tony sent her a discrete nod before once again turning to the gathered people. "Anything else we should cover before I get to work? Something to add, a suggestion, a comment?" He didn't bother trying to stop himself from rolling his eyes when he he heard Rogers clearing his throat to speak. _'Oh, boy.'_

"I have my concerns with the suits you want to put us in, Stark. Quite frankly, I don't trust you. I think we should take our chances without such restraints limiting our movements."

"Well," Tony cut in before anymore idiocy could be spewed out. "If that's how you _all_ feel, I am sure I can just keep my toys to myself. I don't lose or gain anything with this, Rogers, but don't make decisions for everyone else. I won't try to argue with you why you should take my suit because, quite frankly, _I_ don't trust _you_ with a screw, let alone one of my babies. So, if you don't mind, a show of hands of who agrees with Rogers and doesn't want a suit?"

Unsurprisingly, very few hands went up. Maximoff was a given and he wouldn't shed a single tear if she gets killed. Bruce and T'Challa were also a given, seeing as T'Challa had his own Black Panther suit and the Hulk was practically indestructible. Carol, too, had her own alien tech suit that most suited her powers and Loki didn't need protection from the cold any more than Tony did given his Frost Giant ancestry. Everyone else, from the Guardians, to the Asgardians, to the Northuldra, all silently agreed to be given a suit to protect them from the cold, even Scott and Hope, who will no doubt not hear the end of it from Pym when he learns that there might come to some combining of his and Tony's tech. Really, that man was almost as much of a pain in the ass as Rogers was, but only _almost_.

"Well, I guess that settles that. FRIDAY, fie up the lab. Daddy's got work to do. Meet you guys here same time tomorrow for a quick test run. Try to get some rest. Shit's about to get real _real _soon."


	25. Chapter 25

**Show Yourself Into The Unknown**

**Summary: The one where Thanos is dead, Tony has weird dreams instead of nightmares, the Avengers watch dubious Disney movies and mystical creatures are more than real. Oh, and the Cloak totally ships it.**

The day of the soon-to-be fight came far too soon as far as anyone's concerned, really. The suits had been made, everyone tried their's out and found them comfortable and then they all went over their vague plans once more before hitting the sack and sleeping the day away until late afternoon, when they had to start getting ready and setting up the scene to be in their advantage when the Empirikul get through. The time flew by so fast that, had he not known better, Tony would have accused Stephen of using the Time Stone to speed things up out of anxiety for the big fight. Hopefully the last one for a little while. Things had been too hectic as of late.

Everything was going surprisingly smoothly as Tony stood to the side and watched Elsa position the crystals with the Northuldra and the sorcerers to not only get the maximum light out of the things but also set up magical traps around and in them, too. Everyone else was either scouting out their field of battle, making their own traps or finding their ambush hiding spots - or their perch, in the cases of James and Clint as snipers. The terrain probably wasn't the best for a battle of this size but Elsa had put some sort of spell on the snow to make sure it doesn't hinder the Avengers' and their allies' movements while also making life difficult for anyone else. The snow demons were also doing something with magic that made Tony wonder if any snow demons will be left after this battle, but Hiku and his men were determined and would not be deterred.

It was their choice and Tony could only hope that they have taken precautions to survive the backlash of the massive spell they will attempt.

"So, this is finally it, huh? The battle against the biggest foes of magic everywhere, the final stand off." Stephen, who had been busy with Wong and the other sorcerers in setting up the things needed to close the rift properly this time around, came to stand beside him, looking out at the work everyone was doing right now. The Wakandans weren't having nearly as much trouble with the weather as some might have thought to be the case. Good.

"Guess so. Feels like it came too soon."

"Honestly, I just want it all to end. It's been a trying and utterly, unbearably tiring few months. I just want to go back home, get some sleep and take you out on a proper date and never have to see anything white for the next couple of months." Tony tried not to blush at that, completely caught off guard by the admission. Stephen noticed and smirked. "I've wanted to take you out on a date since Titan, dragonrider Stark." Tony snorted at the unnecessary Eragon reference, amused but mostly intrigued and a bit embarrassed by what his human soulmate was saying. "It's just that the universe likes to throw wrenches in my plans and I never got to asking you. Becoming your soulmate kind of left you with the knowledge of my true feelings for you so might as well take you out on a proper date to treat you right lest your dragon take my head off."

Tony felt his blush slowly fading away and instead smirked in what had once been his most exercised sly smile, all flirtation and seduction. "Mhm, then I guess it's a good thing I like your head where it is, _doctor_. And if you treat me right, _indeed_, you can be sure that your reward will be a bit _more_ than just getting to keep your pretty little head on those _amazing_ shoulders." Now that Strange was the one blushing, Tony turned around and marched off with amused, fond laughter bubbling out of his chest.

"Flirting with your cosmic beau, Mr Stark?" Natasha asked with a teasing lilt as they passed by each other, a smirk playing on her lips.

"You know it, Agent Romanov," he replied before heading over to where Rhodey seemed to be having a heated discussion with Rogers, neither man looking all that pleased with each other. Nothing new there. "What is it now?"

"Rogers here," the Colonel said with disgust in his voice, obviously too frustrated to be his cool, smooth, calm self. "Insists on Barnes being in his line of sight at all times but also being on the front lines. Barnes doesn't want to leave the sniper nest he'd just finished making and wants Rogers nowhere near him so he won't distract him. Rogers doesn't seem to get it that people have their right to choose on their own and that their choices should be respected despite people not being happy with them or that they don't align with the choices of other people."

_'As per the usual, then,'_ he thought with a sigh and nearly got a headache, had he not been bonded with Elsa, when he saw the mulish look on Rogers' face. "Look, Rogers, Barnes is a damn good sniper and we need one of those since we've only got three if we count the kleptoraccoon. If he doesn't _want_ to be on the front lines, then you shouldn't try to make him. It's as simple as that. So be a good walking propaganda for the paragon of freedom of choice and equal rights for all and leave the reasonable adults to do their work. We don't have time to clean up your mess or deal with your shit right now, Rogers, so, really, do kindly _fuck off_. And if you say 'Language!', so help me Ahtohallan, I will reach into the Flow of Existence and turn you into your spirit animal - an ass!" Then, with a little shooing motion and barely a half thought desire, the snow and the wind answered his call and started pushing Rogers away from him and his best friend since MIT.

Who was looking both incredibly amused and even more so impressed. "Damn. You need to teach me ow to do that."

"Anytime you want, platypus!" The genius chirped before making his way over to where Elsa and her team had finally finished all of their preparations. His dragon greeted him with a pleased rumble as he reached out to pet the scales of her right front leg, silently marveling at the play of lights and the texture under his hand. He was the only one other than Loki and the snow demons who was walking around in normal clothing. Well, as normal as his undersuit that looked like a track suit can be, anyway. Still, he wasn't dressed in layers and the only 'abnormal' thing about his outfit was the Arc Reactor glowing merrily on his chest. "You ready?"

"With you by my side, my Ib? Always," Elsa replied in a quiet voice so no one would hear them. "Though I do wish to make a change to your outfit. Will you please put on your armor?"

Tony didn't think twice before tapping his fingers on the housing unit and the suit spread around him, covering him from head to toe. Elsa rumbled in pleasure at the trust before she bent her head and breathed over him. He felt her breath like he would never feel the too hot heat and the frigid cold ever again, both present there at the same time as it left her mouth, so packed with magic that even the most oblivious would not remain ignorant of it. At first, he had no idea what was going on, but then he heard it, the sound that reminded him of wind chims and crystals. When it was over, Tony looked down at his armor and had to retract the helmet to believe what he was seeing.

His armor was practically a replica of the one Elsa had worn in her eighteen year old girl guise, a replica of her scales. He probably looked like some prince charming or an ice king. There were wing-like shapes on his back when he twisted around a bit to see if there were any changes there and the crystals around his Arc Reactor met in such a way that the final mosaic was a beautiful snowflake that resembled the one from Frozen but was a bit different due to its centerpiece.

"I thought a little extra protection will do you some good," Elsa said when he finished inspecting her work and looked up at her, finding she had been inspecting it herself with the same critical eye he usually inspected his newest inventions to search for any flaws before he goes on to the testing phase. "It will also hide you against my scales so we can spring surprise attacks on anyone so foolish to attack a dragon."

Tony grinned.

"We're ready to crack open the rift now," a once again calm Stephen called as he approached them, his blush having faded away. The dragon pair turned to regard him in interest. "Everyone's getting into position. Where do you two want to be?"

"We'll be behind the cliff drop over there," Tony replied, pointing towards the said cliff drop to the north. "Elsa and I will be emitting the most magic out of everyone, so hopefully, the worst attack will head straight for us and disregard the rest of you so you can get behind them for an attack from both sides. Hopefully, that will at least give us _some_ sort of an advantage."

"You two just be careful." Then, because he was a little shit and had to get even with Tony for before, he bent down and dropped a kiss on the _tip of his nose_, which might be the sweetest thing Tony had ever experienced. And he knew _Peter_. The sweet moment was broken, however, when his ass was slapped.

"Hey!" He yelped, embarrassed and a bit mortified _Elsa_ had to see that. Though she only felt amused when he checked over their bond. Traitor.

Strange, though, had the gall to try and look innocent. "It's the Cloak!" The red magical cloth, though, puffed up as though offended and pointed one of its high collar wings at the Sorcerer Supreme. The man shot it a murderous look that suggested some form of petty revenge will befall the loyal outerwear. Tony found himself in the unflattering position of not being able to tell which one of them was sincere in their accusation of the other and which one was just being a troll and a shit-stirrer.

What has become of his life if this was a perfectly normal interaction in his book?

After that, though, all amusement and humor drained from the plateau they'd chosen on Everest for this, hopefully, final battle against the Empirikul. Everyone got in place and waited as Stephen, the one who had sewn it together the first time around, undid his spell and they all watched from a reasonable distance as the rift slowly, steadily, opened, unraveling reality to reveal, once again, what used to be the domain of the snow demons. There was very little of it left. It made Tony enraged to see the destruction wrought by the Empirikul, especially as he knew they planned to do the same to Earth in their misguided attempt to 'cleanse' the world of the 'filth' and 'sin' of magic. He had to grit his teeth at the idiocy of such a notion. Ever since he knew of Elsa, he knew that the _multiverse_ can't survive long before collapsing without magic. And ever since he literally dived into the Flow of Existence, he had confirmation and all the proof he needed to believe that, no matter how ridiculous he had once considered things like magic.

The Empirikul had to be stopped, before they destroy _everything_.

The first wave that came through, as expected, was made almost entirely out of Witchfinder Wolves, who sniffed the air a bit before lunging straight towards the cliff fall where Tony and Elsa were hiding, completely bypassing all other magic users, even ones as powerful as Stephen and Loki. Which was more than good, as Tony and Elsa were expecting them with scorching and freezing fire that was delivered with just a few stronger beats of big, elegant wings to life Elsa higher than the cliff level and the opening of a jaw full of big, sharp teeth. The wolves barely had any time to howl in death before their lives were gone but it was a clear sign to _everyone_ that the fight had started. From behind the first and now second wave of Empirikul forces - with more Eyebots - the Avengers and their allies surged into a charge, taking down Empirikul after Empirikul and Witchfinder Wolf after Witchfinder Wolf with no hesitation or all that much difficulty. With cover from three snipers, they made rather easy work of the next wave that came at them as well, but then a beam hit the rift from the other side and it started growing until it was _huge_, like big enough to let a spaceship through.

"Quill!" Tony called even as Elsa surged high into the air, roaring in defiance at the approaching starship of the Imperator.

"I've got your back, Stark!" And moments later, indeed, the Guardians' ship came down from beyond the clouds, Nebula already engaging guns and shooting. Tony had to grin as he opened the arsenal of missiles in his suit and let it precede him and his dragon partner as they flew behind them. The missiles flared, preferably blinding whoever was flying the big ship, before they exploded against a defensive force field shield. Neither Elsa and Tony nor Quill and Nebula were deterred, the two aliens being the first to fire before Elsa followed through with fire and claws. The freezing temperatures of Everest will no doubt cool the surface soon enough, or at least Elsa will make it so given that the shield was energy but Elsa was the master of the aspects of creation. She'll be using her magic in any way to make the shield crack.

It didn't take long for the Imperator's ship to fire back, only this time, Tony used his own armor's energy shields to expand around both himself and his dragon, deflecting the attack before it could possibly cause a tragedy similar to last time. He didn't know how long his shield can hold out against a continuous stream of attacks, but then Rhodey was there and deflecting some of the attention to himself long enough for Elsa to disappear within the clouds.

The snow demons attacked at that moment, sending a big hurricane of ice and cold wind straight at the ship while the sorcerers of Kamar-Taj and the Asgardians were busy with the Eyebots and the Empirikul soldiers, the Avengers and Wakandans taking care of the Witchfinder Wolves that tried to gang up on them. Those things were no doubt their biggest worry, given nothing magical can hide from them and with Elsa and her hatcher up high in the clouds and the wolves almost immune to any and all spells that didn't require physical contact, the main focus were the sorcerers, Asgardians and the Northuldra warriors. The last were busy guarding the crystals Elsa had set up so that both the wolves and the Empirikul would be easily visible. Tony didn't like the numbers they were fighting against. The suits he'd made for everyone were great at protecting them but those things attacking them were tricky and had some seriously advanced technology and the suits can only do so much if the hit is lethal to _Thor_.

Speaking of the thunder god, he and Carol were busy taking down the smaller attacking ships that were trying to make their way through the rift. And Vision was taking care of the drones the command ship was releasing, though Tony would rather he not be that close to weapons that may or may not affect him given that no one had tried using an Infinity Stone on any of these things, nor had they checked if the weapon that had taken down Tony and Elsa can take down Vision as well.

And then there was Peter, part of the team with Wasp and Ant Man meant to get into the engines and fuck them up. Tony didn't like it but at least they had Loki with them and the trickster god had promised him that he would take care of the kid. Not to mention that Karen was recording and sending a live feed of everything that was happening on the kid's mission so Tony can intervene if anything were to go wrong. It was a small comfort, but he needed the assurance that Peter will get out of this as relatively unharmed as he can.

"Stark, we need backup down here!" Rogers called over the comms, but the answer came from Wilson first, surprisingly enough.

"Sorry, Cap. But it just ain't safe. If Stark and Elsa were to drop right now, it'd be game over in seconds."

"I second that." His Rhodey-bear was quick to add, even as he barrel-rolled to the side to avoid a bunch of laser attacks from one of the smaller ships - drones, maybe - before Carol all but headbutted it into smithereens. He heard his best friend whistle appreciatively, even if that did not leave through the suit's speakers, even as War Machine saluted the half Kree woman. "Tony, you stay where you are or so help me god-"

"Yeah, yeah. I'll stay up here all cozy and covered in frost. Try not to get yourselves killed, dumbasses." He cut the line before tentatively calling out to Elsa. "Surely we could do _something_ to help them out a bit? A storm? A hundred little Olafs but definitely stronger and far more powerful? A rain of icicles that hits specific targets?"

Elsa stayed quiet for a moment before he felt a spark of mischief over their bond. Maybe she had spent too much time around Loki as of late. He was obviously a bad influence. "I'll do you one better. Sing with me."

"What?" Tony couldn't help but deadpan, not having expected that at all and not even sure he'd heard right.

But Elsa didn't heed his need for an explanation. Instead, she was already arching her neck and letting her voice vibrate through the mountain air around them. For the second time in as many visits to the planet's highest peak, Tony marveled at how much it reminded him of his glimpse of Ahtohallan, especially as the world answered Elsa's call. Deciding to throw caution into the wind, Tony followed suit, letting his own voice mimic what Elsa was doing until they combined their songs into one and the harmony seemed to make the very planet shake.

Then, seemingly out of nowhere, a snow golem rose from the white powdery substance covering Everest and roared as it grabbed the Witchfinder Wolf closest to Wong, flinging it right onto the fire wolf that appeared out of thin air. Several Eyebots were gathered up by the giant wind snake and spun and spun and spun until it got bored and crushed them. A stone golem had no qualms about squashing right alongside the Hulk all those soldiers even as a water horse swept everything in its way but the humans and friendly aliens in a flood down the cliff fall Tony and Elsa had been hiding behind in the beginning. The metal golem was helping the Northuldra defend the crystals that lit up the night.

Then, the first magical trap was set off and the explosion that came from it was _glorious_. Tony couldn't help but watch in awe at the then series of other explosions shook the battleground. The place was full of such pretty colors that, had he been a painter, he would have loved to try capturing the moment. But he was not. He was a scientist and all he could do to appreciate the colors was determine where they were coming from, how strong they were and how fast they were traveling.

"Okay, that sure beats my suggestions." The elements will surely be a good addition to their fight, even if it made him nervous that there was very little protection left in the Temple of Ahtohallan. If these bastards wanted to destroy magic, in their misguidance, they'd no doubt go for the Flow of Existence and think it a river of magic or whatever. All that Tony knew was that they _can't_ get to the Temple, especially not the innermost sanctum.

Then again, only _he_ can make it into the _Well_, where the memory of Ahtohallan and the Flow of Existence actually were, so hopefully, they were safe in that regard.

"Stark, incoming, six o'clock!" Nebula's warning had him and thus Elsa looking up and evading just in time as a wide and strong beam shot to where they had been seconds ago. The shooter was, as expected, the Imperator, though he wore a significantly different battle armor this time around. Still white, still between sleek and bulky, but witj more red lines to make a sharp contrast against the white plating. He also had more visible weapons on himself than the last time and there was rage in his gaze. Tony didn't know why but that didn't matter. What mattered was putting this bastard down.

"Anyone know whether taking down the Imperator will take out the Empirikul like taking down the mothership did the Chitauri?"


	26. Chapter 26

**Show Yourself Into The Unknown**

**Summary: The one where Thanos is dead, Tony has weird dreams instead of nightmares, the Avengers watch dubious Disney movies and mystical creatures are more than real. Oh, and the Cloak totally ships it.**

**Warning: Some made up words that have no meaning other than looking alien and weird and represent alien insults. Also, violent descriptions of disembowelment and other nasty threats. It's quite descriptive. I must have been in a sadistic mood when I typed that. Then again, I was on a public buss during rush hour after too little sleep.**

**Enjoy! I think ...**

"_You_!" Snarled the insane leader of the Empirikul, pointing some ax-sword-spear-hammer-shield hybrid weapon at dragon and Ib. "You and your _pest_ have been a parasite to this world long enough, HwáKī!"

_'HwáKī?'_ Tony asked Elsa through their souls even as he let his helmet recede so the alien man can see his pissed off expression. "Excuse _you_, but I have been around for only fifty years or so and Elsa's not even a year old so fuck off!"

_'HwáKī is another term for companions of dragons, though this time derogatory. Basically, he just called you dragon's bitch.'_

_'_Oh_, that motherfucker's going _down_.'_

"Your entire _race_ is a plague on this universe, HwáKī! You have been praying on lives and souls of innocents for eons! This ends _today_, you pricàþî!"

_'Pricàþî?'_

'_Shit dwellers.'_

_'Well, at least that's an interesting and creative one,'_ Tony had to admit and filed away the thought for later that he should ask Elsa for alien curses and cuss words and insults. It would seem he was missing out on some very interesting material.

"Once, the last of the dragons escaped me! This time, I shall not allow her _spawn_ to do the same! Your sick, deprived dynasty ends _today_, JœłĶə!"

_'JœłĶə?'_ He couldn't help but ask again, morbidly curious and completely ignoring the usual villain monologue. It was all the same. He'd heard it all before and it made him wonder if there was a sample for the speech or something that all villains used to base their speeches on.

_'He probably means JūłĶə. It means meaningless, worthless parasite worm. Can we fight him now, my Ib? This is starting to get on my nerves, especially his gloating about stalking my mother to her death.'_

_'Of course. Let's go.'_ Tony leaned down closer to Elsa's neck just as she dived for where the Imperator was on what appeared to be some sort of extremely advanced space hoverboard, scorching fire spurting from her mouth. The Imperator cut off his rant at the sudden attack, bringing up some sort of shield to repel the fire. Elsa flew right overhead, all the while breathing flames, before rounding up and changing tactics, the inferno coming out of her mouth blue in color and absolutely freezing in temperature. The shield meant little when ice accumulated around it, becoming heavier and heavier and making the hoverboard waver and strain under the added weight.

Just as the Imperator dropped the shield and started trying to break through the ice, Tony called on the magic he got from Elsa and, in his mind, imagined it combining with the unadulterated Arc Reactor energy from his chest piece before letting it rip, aiming straight for where the white armored man was. The Imperator went flying and Tony noted with great pleasure that a good part of his armor was absolutely _obliterated_. "Should we finish it?"

"Let's," Elsa said with a growling voice that would have sent a shiver down anyone's spine but Tony's, for Elsa was his, part of his soul and a person he was born to share it with and he knew, without a doubt, that she would never hurt him. The growl called to something within him that had, once, made him put on the Gauntlet and used the Infinity Stones, that something that had made him take on the mantle of Iron Man in the first place. Elsa's growl was for the injustice done by this _one man_ to countless civilizations just because one _group_ had caused him pain, for the pain caused by one man's _arrogance_ to think that he had a right to decide for innumerable people, for the _multiverse_, for _Existence itself_. Tony had become Iron Man to stop power being abused against the masses. And as Elsa's Ib, the person who hatched her, who summoned her from her egg into this world, Tony felt the need to protect the rest of the magical peoples in the multiverse.

The Imperator tried to bring them down as they charged towards him, using the same rays - according to FRIDAY's scans - that had disrupted Elsa's magic flow and caused her control to go haywire - from the last time they faced against him, but Elsa executed precise evasive maneuvers to dodge every one of them. When one came too close, they mutually decided to separate, Tony activating the thrusters on his suit and flying off as Iron Man, now leaving the Imperator with not only two targets, but also with two things shooting at him. He was not as stable as one would like to be in a fight while Elsa was a born flier and Tony had been flying around in a suit of armor for over ten years. He was vastly outclassed in the air even without Tony wasting ammunition on him and even on the ground, neither Tony nor Elsa would be at much of a disadvantage.

"We're almost done with the engines, Tony," Hope's voice suddenly filtered through the comms, making him pull back a little from one of his bombing maneuvers so he can safely focus on the small live stream 'chat' window with Hope's fave on it, peter and Scott in the background putting the final touches to whatever chaos they are about to unleash. "We could use a lift. This thing's about to blow in one minute."

"Roger that, Wasp. Start heading out. I'll come pick you guys up. Where's Loki?"

"Here, Man of Iron," said the trickster god as he came into view from behind the corner. "I hear you asked whether the Emiprikul will drop like the Chitauri if the Imperator is taken down. I am happy to deliver the wonderful news that, indeed, they will. They are linked to his bio-signature. The second he drops, they will."

That was the _best_ news Tony's heard in a while. Well, if the news weren't regarding Elsa or Peter, anyway, since those two were _always_ good news. "Great job, you guys, now get the fuck out of there so I can take you to safety. Iron Man out." He switched to a different frequency, this one shared with everyone down on the ground. "Guys, the infiltration team's done and coming out. Clear the area. Doc, you and your Merlinians ought to get ready to close that rift soon. Raindeer Games just reported that the Emirikul will drop the second the Imperator hits the bucket. This fight is slowly coming to an end."

"What about the Witchfinder Wolves? Do they drop as well?" Barnes asked as he kept shooting said beasts with his strongest riffle.

"Keep killing the fuckers until we find out. Gotta go now." He concentrated on flying off, signaling Elsa he had to get to the next part of thei plan and heading straight for the belly of the command ship. It didn't take long to spot the Iron Spider suit and Loki in all of his Asgardian glory, nor did it take long for Tony to swoop in and take them each by the waist, flying off down towards the ground. When they were almost there, a somewhat safe distance away from the ship that was seconds from being blown sky high, Valkyrie met up with them and gestured for Loki to get behind her onto her pegasus. Tony still needed some getting used to to _that_, which was ridiculous given he had a dragon sharing his soul from the beginning of _everything_ and had a soulmate as of recently.

"Need a ride?"

"Don't mind if I do."

Tony and Peter watched as they easily maneuver around until the Frost Giant was seated on the flying horse behind the female warrior of legend and they were off. The two scientists could only gawk for a bit before shaking it off and continuing on just as the ship above and a little behind them finally blew up. Stark whistled. "You guys did a _really_ good job."

"Thanks," replied Scott from where he and hope were cupped in Peter's hands.

"Alright, this is where I drop you guys off," Tony announced as he came within five meters of the ground, knowing that Peter can manage higher jumps but deciding to be safe. "I need to get back to Elsa. You guys be careful."

He flew off again, shooting at a few Witchfinder Wolves and Eyebots on the way, going straight to Elsa. She was practically dancing around the Imperator, making Tony feel a bit lightheaded with worry at how close some of those dangerous beams were getting. Still, he didn't have time to be a worrywart right now. Not when he could see an opening with the enemy leader's attention focused solely on his dragon partner with his back turned to Tony. Immediately, he formed a sword on his arm from his nanites, admiring the way Elsa's magic covered it in icicles, making it stronger and sharper and thrum with energy and he knew, without a doubt, that this blade will pierce the shield should the Imperator throw it up if he sees Tony coming. He actually turned off his loud repulsors and wondered if Elsa's little wing addition will work. It, of course, _did_ and flying with magic with just a thought, a direction in the form of his will, was a thing he will need to learn to get used to one day, but at least it was smooth flying right now. And it was quiet. It may not be stealthy visually but there was almost no sound to be heard as the wings flapped on the wind.

The Imperator _did_ notice him coming, at practically the last second, and managed to whirl around just enough to block the initial attack, but Tony just as quickly formed a second sword and used that one to slice the Imperator's hybrid weapon in half. The man stared at his weapon - given it had stopped the first slice, it must have been made of some pretty strong material, so perhaps the surprise was well warranted - for a long moment, watching how the energy leaked out of it, leaving it cold and with none of that dangerous power that had nearly killed Tony, Elsa and the multiverse with them. Then, his even more enraged eyes flew up to meet Tony's - well, the Iron Man's faceplate, anyway - glaring death at the genius billionaire former-playboy philanthropist.

"I will rip you apart piece by piece, HwáKī! I will tear out your heart and feast upon it! I will gauge out your eyeballs and force them down your own throat! I will cut off your genitalias and show them up your anus and I will take out your intestines and stuff them into your stomach until it bursts! I will drain out every one of your blood vessels and bathe in your blood and make your dragon _watch_-"

The Imperator cut off when a large spike of ice pierced through _his_ heart at that exact moment. He and Tony both looked over his shoulder to see Elsa looking more enraged and more _dangerous_ than anyone has ever seen her before. Tony, who had the memories of Ahtohallan, had actually never seen _any_ dragon look that dangerous before. If he were an animal, he had no doubt he could _smell_ her killing intent in the air. She was radiating it in energy anyway, so there would be no mistaking it. The spike of ice was coming from her hand, held like a sword, as weird as it was to see a dragon holding a weapon when their whole _being_ was a weapon. Her voice, when she spoke, was full of the rage of millions upon millions of dragons that had come before her, echoed all of their roars of loss and anger. Elsa's voice always sounded either human or almost angelic with how pleasing it was to the ear.

This time, even Tony shuddered when he heard it, an instinctual reaction from his hindbrain in the presence of such a dangerous predator.

"No one, NO ONE, threatens MY IB!"

"M-m-monster!" The terrified man squeaked, which made Stark wonder if this guy had ever actually _faced_ a real dragon head on or if he'd always just had his lackeys do it for him. Not that it mattered. A second later, Elsa brought up her tail - spiked with those ice-like crystal shards - wrapped it around him and let it contract with the spikes all pointed as inwards as she could manipulate the prehensile limb. A spurt of gray colored blood came under the pressure and the bladed tips and the Imperator's body went limp in Elsa's hold. She threw it away a second later, used magic to fling away the fluids dirtying her tail and hide before hesitant eyes turned to her Ib.

It had never occurred to Tony that dragons could be that aggressive.

It had never really occurred to him that Elsa had been aware of that part of her nature the whole time.

It had never really, truly occurred to him that she will fear his reaction to how aggressively she might act in an attempt to protect him, whether he will still view her the same or if he will reject her.

It never occurred to him that he ever could. He couldn't. Not even in the face of this, of how _dangerous_ she could be. Not even with the revelation that dragons weren't as perfect as everyone seemed to be making them out to be.

But Tony didn't believe in perfect. Never had and never will again, even if he had temporarily had his eyes wrapped in wool for a short while and then had them forcefully opened again in the wake of what could be considered an ultimate betrayal of his trust. (Was it? Or was that Stane?)

Either way, Elsa was Elsa and she had never been aggressive towards anyone - not really - until this moment and the Imperator was an enemy who was, knowingly or unknowingly, threatening the entirety of existence and it was Elsa's duty and _purpose_ to protect it. And Tony could understand that. He had done much the same to Thanos when he got his hands on the Infinity Stones. He couldn't and never _would_ judge Elsa for doing it. He wouldn't judge _anyone_ for doing it.

(Perhaps that was what put such a divide between him and Rogers from the getgo. Tony would never judge, for he has acknowledged all of his flaws years ago, even if he pretends in front of everyone else that he thinks himself flawless. Steve Rogers, on the other hand, genuinely believes himself to be the perfect human being, completely forgetting that such a thing doesn't exist, can_not_ exist as it defies human nature - wasn't Rogers christian? Doesn't Christianity, whichever teaching, say that only _God_ with the big G was perfect? Did Rogers think himself a god among men? - and he goes out of his way to convince everyone else the same. Tony doesn't judge people but is always judged and Rogers judges people but has never allowed anyone else to judge him because maybe he knows in some subconscious part of his mind that he will be found wanting 'despite' the supersoldier serum.

And people are surprised by who of the two of them had ended up as the dragon summoner in the end, honestly.)

"We did it," the genius says, withdrawing his weapons and his helmet as a grin stretched across his face so Elsa can both see and feel his acceptance of this part of her, watching fondly as she relaxes in relief. He hadn't even realized how tense she was until it all melted away.

The cheering from the ground when all the Empirikul simply slumped to the ground like puppets whose strings were cut and the last Witchfinder Wolf was slain came as though on cue and Tony laughed at the ridiculousness of his life. Elsa just purred as she drifted closer to him and then the two of them danced across the sky, around each other in victory and celebration, only the rush of air and beating if wings mattering in their minds for at least just this short while.

"Na nanana hey nana Naa Naa Naa Hey na hey na hey na NaaNaaNaa Naaa!" The Northuldra's song greeted their ears and Tony and Elsa turned to each other amber meeting blue-light purple-pink ones before they dived for the ground to land in front of where the Sami were waiting waiting for them with smiles on their faces while the Avengers seemed to realize only _now_ that the greeting they got the morning they woke up as their guests was actually meant for _Tony_ and not _them_. The elements came to stand in between the Northuldra and the dragon-Ib pair and bowed their heads as the song reached its peak and Elsa finished it off with a victorious roar that made the world shudder. Tony couldn't help but laugh as he leaned against the one he was created for and who was created for him until Stephen landed before him with the flutter of the ever dramatic Cloak and drew him into a chaste kiss that turned into another and another and would have turned into not so chaste ones if Wong hadn't cleared his throat very pointedly.

"We still have a rift to close," the Asian sorcerer pointed out and the Sorcerer Supreme honest to Ahtohallan _pouted_ but nodded and went along. Then the words registered in Tony's mind and he turned to look up at Elsa, seeing she was already looking back at him with the same thoughts churning in her mind as they were in his.

"Wait," he called after the sorcerers gathering beneath the rift, making them pause and looking at him expectantly as he jogged his way over. "We can't just close the rift! What about the snow demons?"

"What about them?" Wanda scoffed, earning herself a severe glare from several sources that were too large for Tony to name without making it look like one of his old party guest lists. "Their world is destroyed. They stay here and help the Avengers." She said it as though she were _royalty_ and the last few remaining snow demons were meant to be her _servants_ or, and this better not be the case because Tony would fucking _kill_ her, _slaves_.

Elsa looked quite disgusted to be speaking with her at all but she did and she pointed at herself as if that alone should be explanation enough. And it would be, but because Maximoff and certain others were just that thick, the young dragon explained herself anyway. "Dragons and their Ib possess the power to control the Flow of Existence. Tony and myself can coax the Flow to revive their world and the people that the Empirikul have destroyed."

"Then why not just do the same thing for everyone else?" Rogers asked, sounding predictably suspicious and judgmental. "Why not give everyone else the same treatment?"

"Because everyone else was not so lucky as to have any remaining members of their species," Elsa answered, looking down on Rogers as if this should have been obvious. "One, we don't even know who all they have attacked. Two, with no survivors to base our coaxing on, we can't do anything for any people without making them clones of others or getting it all wrong, perhaps lethally so. And three, we couldn't simply do it all at once, as you seem to be implying. I am still young and while _all_ dragons can manipulate the Flow of Existence, some can do it better than others, be it training or talent or the strength of their connection to their hatchers. Until I am older and more sure of my limits, it is not a good idea to be making big overtures with the Flow lest we cause something we shouldn't. Don't involve yourself into matters that don't concern you, Mr Rogers."

"The safety of the world very much concerns me," the blond retorted and Tony rolled his eyes. He did it again, especially hard, when Rogers crossed his arms in a stubborn stance that just _begged_ to pound away at Tony's brilliant brain in a massive headache. "I've already said this before. I don't _trust_ you. Neither one of you is qualified to hold that much power and responsi-" His tirade cut off when a familiar sparking portal opened beneath his feet and he fell through, the portal closing behind him in a second.

"Oops," Stephen deadpanned. "My sling ring slipped." Not even Wong chastised him for using his powers in such a way. "Anyway, you two were saying you could save at least some of Hiku's people?"

Tony nodded at the man who had become his soulmate - and with whom he had yet to go out on a proper date yet, something that will probably be happening soon - before he used his repulsors to level out with Elsa's neck. He climbed on with the ease of someone who had been doing this for years despite it being only the second or third time. The memories of former dragons and their summoners helped. "We'll be right back. Try not to miss us too much."

"My heart is weeping already," came the sarcastic reply that had Elsa snorting and Tony outright laughing even as Elsa took him through the rift to heal a world.

He idly wondered how long Rogers will be falling through empty inter-space for.


	27. Chapter 27

**Show Yourself Into The Unknown**

**Summary: The one where Thanos is dead, Tony has weird dreams instead of nightmares, the Avengers watch dubious Disney movies and mystical creatures are more than real. Oh, and the Cloak totally ships it.**

"Hey, Nebs! Long time no see!" Tony greeted as he climbed down from Elsa's back, looking as good as ever despite the long years that have passed since the cyborg and the android have last seen him. "Vision! I feared you wouldn't be here for the visit. Didn't you say you'd go with Thor on that trip to wherever so Lokes and Valkyrie can have some alone time for once?"

Vision smiled at his creator as both he and his partner gladly accepted the hugs. They have missed him dearly, for years were long and slow ever since he started traveling the multiverse with his soulmates to find out what had truly happened to all the dragons, hoping against hope that there might be some egg, somewhere, so Elsa would not be alone and last. Nebula may have missed him even more than Vision had. The alien cyborg had come to greatly rely on having him around, after all, and to spend five years apart at a time or even longer if there were no emergencies had been hard on her in the beginning.

Especially when the people she had finally grown used to slowly started succumbing to their mortality.

Vision tried not to think about it, but as more years passed, the more he got used to having proper emotions and there was very little 'artificial' left about him. Learning from humans how to _be_ human was humbling and painful but so rewarding that he would never regret it. No matter how sentimental he got when some of their remaining friends returned after a long time away.

The first ones to go were, of course, the old Pym couple, soon followed by Fury and then, eventually, Colonel Rhodes, Mr Hogan and then a few years later Ms Potts. While his creator had never even talked civilly with Hank Pym, Vision knew his creator mourned another connection to his parents lost and that was not even mentioning how _devastated_ he had been at the deaths of his closest friends. Some time later, Mr Wilson followed after his fellow air force pilot, though he went down in battle while trying to extract civilians from a falling building during one of the alien/extradimensional attacks that had at one point become the norm on Earth. Sargent Barnes, despite hating flying, took up the Redwing as a legacy and flew it for a good ten more years before he finally retired. He had lived out the next thirty years as any normal man would, enjoying life, finding himself a wife and children in Agent Romanov of all people and the two of them finally succumbed to their lifestyles together, in sleep, a poisonous gas taking them. They had seen it coming.

Their two sons and three daughters carried on their names and wrought fear onto the world. Their godfather - Tony - had been quite proud. They had had both their parents' talents and skills.

Mr Lang and Ms Van Dyne (Mrs Lang) outlived the other 'normal' humans by a good twenty years, nearly reaching their hundred and tenth birthday. They had kept expanding on Dr Pym's quantum technology until it practically became a household commodity, creating a cleaner world. Their children and grandchildren continued their legacy with the Pym particles and had even found some other interesting things in the Quantum Realm, especially given that one of them had joined the Sorcerers of Kamar-Taj so they can learn more about the multiverse.

Major Danvers left the Earth after Colonel Rhodes' death. She only used to come around for emergencies, birthdays and death anniversaries of the people she had once called family until she, too, died, at nearly three hundred years of age. Mr Quill, too, lived a long life. He eventually got over Ms Gamora and found love again, had kids and went down in a blaze of glory while evacuating a planet when Galactus came for a snack - Vision _still_ remembered the time Earth had been threatened. Bless Elsa and the fact that what was left of Ahtohallan was on Earth and therefore the planet must be protected - long after his companions other than Groot had passed away. He hoped that if there _was_ such a thing as the afterlife that the Guardians of the Galaxy were reunited once again. Agent Barton lived out the rest of his life with his family peacefully, finally letting go of the Avengers after that last fight on Mount Everest. He had died of old age and passed on the title of Hawkeye to his daughter Laura. It was more than he had been expecting, given how his old partner had ended up. King T'Challa and Princess Shuri didn't really remain in touch and Doctor Banner tended to stick around Thor, who liked to go gallivanting across the universe when he had the time or got overwhelmed by his kingly duties, leaving Loki and Valkyrie in charge of New Asgard. Those four were the only ones still around from the old gang besides himself and Nebula.

The only ones Vision had no idea what had happened to was actually Captain Rogers and Ms Maximoff. He had been to Wong's funeral wake when the Asian sorcerer passed away peacefully in his sleep after a long hundred years of service to Kamar-Taj - sorcerers, apparently, tended to live long if they're not killed in the line of duty - and he had been one of his creator's pillars of support when eventually Mr Parker grew up and died as well, as all things must at one point, but he'd never seen hide or tail of either of the two of them ever again. Captain America had grown outdated by the time Tony Stark finally introduced the world to Elsa and the man had just left one day, apparently expecting the others to get up and follow him like they had the last time. He never returned, not even for Sargent Barnes' and Agent Ronanov's service. As for Wanda Maximoff, the Scarlet Witch threw a temper tantrum unbefitting of even young Nathaniel (he had been turning only seven at the time) when Vision finally took his creator's advice and pursued the romantic feelings he had developed for the blue cyborg standing at his side to this day. Neither of them were organic enough to have children but neither of them really knew how to be parents, either. They _did_ settle for being the default babysitters for everyone else, though. They even trained the Young Avengers, the Neo Avengers and even the most recently formed Nova Avengers, so they had always been surrounded by people and kids especially, which helped them heal from some of the hardships they'd experienced in life.

It had been a good life.

Though maybe not as good a life as the last dragon, her Ib and the Sorcerer Supreme have been living.

Tony, Stephen and Elsa have been traveling the universe for _centuries_ now, ever since the last of their mortal friends passed away, trying to figure out what had happened to all the dragons. Tony had the _knowledge_ from Ahtohallan, the memories, but neither he nor Elsa were satisfied with that, not when so many were hunted to the ends of the universe and that opened the possibility that some dragon _somewhere_ may have also had an egg waiting to be hatched by its Ib. Elsa and Tony held out hope despite the amount of years that by now still produced no results. They were stubborn enough to comb-pick the entire multiverse and they _did_ need _something_ to keep them busy for what might be a small eternity that will be their lifetime. Dragons tended to outlive _stars_ and Elsa would still be considered a _baby_ dragon had there been any others around. As long as Tony lived and she herself remained relatively safe, the multiverse will have many more years of existence ahead.

Doctor Strange, of course, followed after them on their crazy adventures. The good doctor had followed through with his promise of a date and he and the man he had bound his soul to in an attempt to save him had entered a relationship that did them both much, _much_ good. Stephen at least kept a good eye on them, reminding them of their biological needs if they ever got too excited. They came back every few years to visit Earth and make sure everything was running smoothly, sometimes even bringing whatever stragglers they'd picked up on their journey. Earth was by this point a rather well known destination in the universe and everyone knew better than to try to invade/attack/destroy it, not when all previous attempts have proven futile and hazardous for the health of the attacker. Stephen still had his duties as Sorcerer Supreme but at least magic was not the problem when he needed to make weekly visits to Kamar-Taj and the Sanctums.

The three of them hadn't aged a day since the day Stephen bound his soul to Tony's. He had already been predestined to live long as the Sorcerer Supreme, but being tied to the Ib of a dragon had extended his life exponentially. It was humbling to see the two men looking so young and healthy when even Vision and Nebula had started showing signs of wear and age on their faces. The two men hadn't been all that young when they had stopped aging but they _were_ good looking for a couple of two thousand year olds. They only showed signs of age and loss and grief and life lessons in their eyes now. They looked like they were preparing to face another loss as he looked at them now.

It was to be expected. Valkyrie had reached the usual life expectancy of Asgardians, Thor was close and Loki wasn't all that far behind, either. Tony, Stephen and Elsa had taken to visiting more often so they'd have some more memories of their not-so-immortal friends. They didn't want to miss those last moments they could have with them. Not like they had for the Guardians, or James Barnes and Natasha Romanov. Dr Banner will probably outlive them all, other than the three soulmates of course, though the scientist wasn't all that enthusiastic about that. Vision was honestly surprised that he hadn't tried to ask to join them on their adventures. Elsa could take some added weight.

And speaking of Elsa, she was the only one to have changed any. She'd grown to her full size, even though she could actually change sizes at will. She was now of the appearance of an adult, fully grown dragon and she was nearly the size of one of those 'space wales' that Vision had disturbing memories of its insides from when his basic coding belonged to JARVIS. Her features had sharpened, her claws had grown and her teeth were more prominent. She'd somehow become even _more_ beautiful than she had been when she just hatched. Elsa had come into her power and shone like a star under the reflectors on the landing patch at the Nova Avengers Compound - it's been redesigned at least five _hundred_ times by now, remodeled to fit every new person that joined the team - in the dark night. She could still change shape to appear human at any age, but she seems to usually stick to her own body and only changes size so she can cuddle with her summoner. No matter how many years may pass, the need for physical affection between those two never stopped and it never ceased to be 'adorable'.

"I wouldn't miss your visits for the world," Vision replied to Stark's comment in a gentle tone, shaking hands with Stephen when the shorter man stepped away. He took in the clothes they were wearing and arched what _would_ have been an eyebrow if he were still trying to fit in to the human standards of normal and beauty. That had changed many, _many_ years ago, especially when other species became regular visitors to Earth. He didn't have to be anyone else but himself. It was freeing.

What also appeared to be rather changed and _freeing_ was the outfit the quintillionaire was wearing. Tony Stark was never out of style or behind the times, be it fashion- or technology- or knowledge-wise, and with years he proved that he was indeed like fine wine or the best whiskey. To this day, despite the huge changes technology underwent every ten minutes, Stark Inter_galactic_ was still one of the leading technological companies. With not even the multiverse as the limit, Tony had taken to new and alien technologies like duck to water and most people were almost eager to teach him given how ready to learn he was. In the fashion sense, various peoples also loved to test their original or traditional local designs on the man who flew the stars in search for answers, because it was a matter of fact that Tony Stark can pull off _anything_.

Like he was pulling off the outfit he was wearing right now. Then again, Tony was used to skin tight undersuits for his Iron Man armors - which had gotten even _more_ ridiculously advanced with new technologies and materials but that's a story for another time - so he knew how to work the light blue leather-like one he was wearing now with only what appeared to be a white silk see-through robe that formed a hollow triangle near his ankles up to just bellow his greatest _ass_et and several belts around his waist, thighs and ankles that matched it in color.

And while Tony gladly changed his clothing fashion with every new civilization they visited, Stephen remained in his same old dusty robes for the majority of the time, though they seem to have managed to put even _him_ into some rather interesting black clothing this time around. Black leather pants, black leather boots, a leather trench coat with gold trimming and red designs on his chest and, of course, his ever loyal and never wavering Cloak of Levitation around his shoulders, he matched Tony rather nicely. Stephen has spent the centuries of travel to gather more magical knowledge and become even stronger, which was rather scary given he'd already been strong enough to use magic even in a place as warded as the Temple of Ahtohallan - which, thankfully, remained undisturbed to this day except for when Tony and Elsa check up on it once a year - so at least there was someone out there to watch Tony's and Elsa's backs. Stephen had trained a few students on his travels and some of them had even joined them for years and years. Vision and Nebula never met any of them but the trio spoke very fondly of the 'baby wizards' that now terrorized the universe's and multiverse's idiotic villains.

At least they appeared to be having fun.

"We visited the Nu'miroji before we cane here," the sorcerer explained when he noticed the looks the android was giving them. "They insisted on dressing us up and apparently Tony has a weak spot for leather."

"_Fashionable_ leather, mind you," corrected the dragon summoner with a mock haughty sniff. "Besides, I look _good_ in this and it's good to see you out of those boring old robes for once, Stephen. One would think you're a _monk_ with how you dress all the time, honestly! Even Vision and Nebula have more of a fashion sense then you and they prefer not to go out much. _Hell_, even _Thor_ has better fashion sense than you and _he_ thought _dreadlocks_ were _cool_. Loki has to dress him up half the time so he doesn't embarrass either Earth or New Asgard."

"I take great offense at that, you douchebag," huffed the insulted intergalactic doctor - and yes, Stephen Strange had _indeed_ returned to his passion now that he knew he would have time for both. It took him years to manage all the new medical knowledge he got to soak up but he was obviously a talented and _born_ doctor just like he was apparently born to be Sorcerer Supreme.

"Whatever, asshole."

The affectionate name calling seems to have stayed the same as well. Even after all these years, Vision thought he will never truly understand their relationship.

"How goes your search?" Nebula asked before they could start bicker-flirting in that way that always almost ended with both hers and Vision's circuits near frying as they tried to figure out _how_ and _why_ and always end up stumped. It was best to end it before it began. The kids would want to see their 'uncles'.

"Quite well, actually," Elsa answered instead of her two companions, shrinking down to the size she'd been when she'd first hatched like she was wont to when she wanted cuddles and snuggles from her Ib. "We found a rumor about an old abandoned colony that had a few temples dedicated to dragons before it was mysteriously abandoned. We hope to go there after our visit."

"That sounds promising," Vision offered, knowing that even if it turned out to be empty yet again, at least they will have found more of Elsa's people's history. "Have either of you entered the Flow recently?"

"Yeah, just yesterday. You know we like to make sure our visits will be safe and stress-free, Viz." Vision had to smile at the reassurance and reminder. It was true that they did indeed try their best to make it so, even though circumstances don't always allow for it.

"Then may we tempt you with a cup of tea or coffee before we meet with the others? Loki and Valkyrie should be arriving soon and the children still have an hour or so more of training. We would like to hear about the newest adventures you've had."

Elsa, who shrank so she can wrap around her Ib's shoulders, yawned in preparation for a nap. "Only if we go down to the lab. I miss FRIDAY, Dum-E, U and Butterfingers."

"Probably for the best," agreed the good doctor. "We _do_ have to discuss Vormir. It seems it's starting to get unstable. We may have to relocate the Soul Stone soon enough to a safer, more stable location. I don't think Vormir is capable of protecting it anymore."

"Just as good," Loki's voice drifted into their ears as he and Valkyrie walked through the little rift in shadows that Loki most often used to travel these days. "Thor reports that the Reality Stone also needs moving. Someone's trying to collect them again. It's best if we hide all the Infinity Stones well enough that _we_ can't find them. Except the Time Stone, of course. That thing needs watching."

"Agreed," Tony and Stephen said together. Vision had long since gotten used to hiding the Infinity Stone that game him life behind a layer of 'skin' so it was not visible even when he used it in battle. He will never again make himself such an obvious target and with the amulet Doctor Strange gave him to hide its signature, it wasn't such an impossible mission. "The Power and Reality Stones have to be moved, obviously, and you're guarding Space and Mind and we've got Time. I'm not sure where we can put the Soul Stone, though."

"The Well of Ahtohallan could work," Nebula suggested casually. She shrugged when they all looked at her contemplatively.

"She's got a valid point," Valkyrie agreed with her only humanoid female companion in this conversation. "Only Tony and Elsa can go in there. The deeper you put it, the less likely is the chance anyone or anything can get it."

Tony sighed but he didn't sound all that displeased. Vision knew he liked going to the Temple and jumping into the Well. Tony had tried explaining it to him once, the feeling, what he saw down there, the amazing things to learn, how he _belonged_ ... Vision had never understood the bulk of it and the man had never found quite the right words. "Fine. We'll go get it after our visit ends and out it down in the Well. _But_," he said mock threateningly. "We get to choose the movie."

"Ugh, _no_," Loki complained immediately, looking disgusted already. "You'll just pick those old Frozen movies again."

"It began our journey!" Protested the genius inventor.

"Doesn't mean we have to watch it each and every time you come to visit," Stephen pointed out and Tony pouted with deadly force at his soulmate. Stephen, who was wise to his ways, only looked away so as not to be manipulated. "Pick another movie."

"Not Tony Story. Fuck but that movie reminds me of the old Avengers team." They all had to shudder in agreement to that one.

"How about we show you the movies Terrans made in their honor?" Nebula suggested and Vision looked at her in surprise. Nebula had been the first to protest the idea of showing Tony, Stephen and Elsa the 'biographies' the world had written for them. The movies were great, accurate and extremely popular, but they had reawakened the IronStrange fan club and Tony had _nightmares_ of the fangirls back from when he regularly inhabited Earth.

"And we can find the Disney movies that match them!" And, of course, the children had arrived. Vision couldn't help but smile how toddlers, preschoolers, preteens, teens and even young adults all flocked to Tony's and Stephen's side, eager for hugs and head pats and hair ruffles. They all heard from them regularly since across space communication was nothing new nor difficult anymore, but being here in person always excited the kids and these reunions always made for quite a heartwarming scene. Especially the way Tony tended to fold like wet toilet paper for five year old Morgan Antonia Parker, the great great great great great great great great great great grandniece of Peter Benjamin Parker. He'd always had an extremely soft place for the Parker family. He'll probably never let her change her last name and will pull the Eleventh and refuse to let the baby bear the father's name, either. It was endearing.

"Okay, okay! Slow down, you little munchkins! I'm not as young as I used to be!" Tony laughed as he allowed to children to heard him away, Stephen following right after his soulmate with grand amusement, as always. The rest of them just sighed in fond exasperation and went after them as well.

Perhaps they'll even let Tony put on the old Frozen movies again.

Sometimes you don't need to show yourself into the unknown to have fun, after all.

**THE END**


End file.
